Who we are
Ken Paulson is the director of the Free Speech Center. He is a former editor-in-chief of USA Today and dean emeritus at Middle Tennessee State University. He is also the host of The Songwriters, television show appearing on PBS affiliate stations nationwide.
Deborah Fisher is director of the John Seigenthaler Chair of Excellence in First Amendment Studies, which partners with the Free Speech Center on the First Amendment Encyclopedia.
Emily Flood oversees the Free Speech Center’s administration.
Brian Buchanan is senior editor for the Free Speech Center.
Leslie Haines is the Free Speech Center’s lead designer.
Kira Hilley is the Free Speech Center’s development officer.
What we do
FOR MEDIA INTERVIEWS: Press hotline 615-898-5829
The Free Speech Center is a nonpartisan, nonprofit public policy center dedicated to building understanding of the five freedoms of the First Amendment through education, information and engagement. It does not participate in litigation or lobbying.
Its educational efforts include:
- The First Amendment Encyclopedia, an unparalleled collection of more than 1,500 articles on First Amendment topics, court cases and history, written to be accessible by young people and the general public. About 20,000 students and educators access the site each school day. (See more about the Encyclopedia.)
- 1 for All, a national nonpartisan and nonprofit educational effort to build understanding and respect for the five freedoms of the First Amendment in secondary and higher education.
- Nationwide ad campaigns to raise awareness of the First Amendment among a younger generation.
- Frequent news, analysis and commentary on current First Amendment issues at freespeech.center.
- See the Free Speech Center YouTube channel.
- See the Free Speech Center newsletter.
- See the 2022 Free Speech Center Annual Report, and the 2020 Free Speech Center Annual Report.
- The First Amendment Press, publications designed to inform and engage on First Amendment freedoms.
Our mission
A good high school or university strives to educate students for the future, preparing for life as professionals, but also as citizens. It’s the latter that proves to be the true challenge. Too many students move into adulthood with only a limited sense of how our country works and a lack of appreciation for the rich experience that living in a democracy provides. That’s troubling because the next generation is in the best position to help us break the vicious pattern of partisanship and rancor that now plagues our nation.
The Free Speech Center is a nonpartisan public policy center at Middle Tennessee State University that works to build understanding of the First Amendment and Bill of Rights through education, information, and engagement.
We emphasize:
- The need for citizens to stay truly informed by selecting reliable and trustworthy news sources.
- The importance of engaging in society, encouraging constructive change through the exercise of core freedoms.
- Recognizing that free speech is a universal value in our society, and that it is most beneficial when coupled with a willingness to listen in a civil and respectful exchange of ideas.
To that end, the Free Speech Center:
- Provides daily news and insights into free expression and offers a comprehensive repository of First Amendment history and law in its First Amendment Encyclopedia, serving almost 4 million site visitors per year.
- Publishes books, teacher’s guides, white papers, television shows and video content that illuminate our fundamental freedoms of expression for students, educators, and the public.
- Serves as an authoritative resource on First Amendment freedoms for news organizations around the world.
- Manages extensive media outreach on multiple platforms, all with an eye toward conveying core Constitutional principles in an informal, accessible, and intriguing way.
Contact us
Drop us a message at FreeSpeechCenter@mtsu.edu.
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From the archives
Launch of the Free Speech Center
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