USA Today shakes up top ranks, names Kenneth Paulson new editor

NEW YORK (AP) _ Veteran journalist and free speech commentator Kenneth Paulson, named as editor of USA Today as part of a senior-level shakeup, says he will move gingerly to heal the ``black eye''

Friday, April 30th 2004, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

NEW YORK (AP) _ Veteran journalist and free speech commentator Kenneth Paulson, named as editor of USA Today as part of a senior-level shakeup, says he will move gingerly to heal the ``black eye'' suffered by the nation's top-selling newspaper in a fraud scandal involving a former star reporter.

Paulson, named to the post Thursday, replaces Karen Jurgensen, who resigned abruptly last week just before executives released a report by a panel of journalism experts that faulted management for not catching Jack Kelley's misdeeds. Kelley was found to have committed many acts of fabrication and plagiarism over the course of the past decade.

Paulson was an editor and reporter for 18 years and held several senior editing positions within Gannett Co., USA Today's parent company and the largest newspaper publisher in the country. He was also one of USA Today's founding staff members.

Most recently Paulson was executive director of the First Amendment Center, a free speech education organization that is part of the Freedom Forum. Paulson, who is also a lawyer, wrote a column and hosted a weekly public television show on free expression issues.

The First Amendment Center was founded by John Seigenthaler, a newspaper industry veteran who led the investigation into Kelley's fraudulent reporting and USA Today's newsroom culture. Publisher Craig Moon said Seigenthaler did not suggest Paulson for the job, but once his name was in contention Moon called Seigenthaler for a recommendation.

In an interview, Paulson indicated that he would proceed slowly in implementing the panel's recommendations for improving the newspaper's culture. The panel said it found a ``virus'' of fear in the paper's newsroom and poor communication among staff.

``USA Today is a fine newspaper that has had a black eye in the past few weeks, but that will heal,'' Paulson said. ``This is one newspaper where I'm not coming in with a grand plan to turn it on its head.''

As for addressing the panel's finding that many reporters at USA Today found the atmosphere oppressive, Paulson said: ``This is the most entertaining way to make a living in the world. ... We hope to publish a newspaper with even higher standards and have a good time doing it.''

As part of the editorial shake-up, USA Today also named replacements for Hal Ritter, who resigned last week as managing editor for news, and for executive editor Brian Gallagher, who is becoming editor of the editorial page.

John Hillkirk, formerly managing editor of the newspaper's business section, will succeed Gallagher as executive editor, and Carol Stevens, formerly editor of the editorial page, will become managing editor for news. Jim Henderson, the deputy managing editor in the business section, will replace Hillkirk.

The announcements were made at an afternoon staff meeting.

Kelley resigned under pressure in January after admitting to trying to deceive a team of editors examining the veracity of his work. A subsequent review by the outside experts found that he had engaged in extensive fakery and plagiarism dating back as early as 1991.