Brian J. Buchanan

Brian J. Buchanan (web@fac.org) is managing editor/online for the First Amendment Center in Nashville, Tenn. The website is the First Amendment Center Online at www.firstamendmentcenter.org.

Buchanan has also been publications director, director of journalism programs, and media-relations director for the Freedom Forum, which he joined in 1985 as staff writer.

He has worked in public information at the State University of New York College at Brockport and as an advertising copywriter for the Lawyers Cooperative Publishing Co. in Rochester, N.Y. For more than five years he was a copy editor and night news editor at the daily Rochester Democrat and Chronicle newspaper.

Buchanan holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Indiana University and a master's in English from the State University of New York. He lives in Nashville with his wife, Juda.

Posts by Brian J. Buchanan:

Press Commentary | Brian J. Buchanan | June 3, 2011

Weiner boxing with press over briefs doesn’t serve us well

Congressman has suggested that journalists are out of line for asking about Twitter pic. They aren’t.

First Amendment News | Brian J. Buchanan | April 22, 2011

Welcome to our redesigned site

First Amendment Center Online gets a new look for a new era.

Speech Commentary | Brian J. Buchanan | January 10, 2011

Free speech not on trial in Giffords shooting

Hold on, there, sheriff.
Before the crime scene had even been fully analyzed, Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik was quick to blame free speech after the horrific attack Jan. 8 in Tucson, Ariz., that left a federal judge and several others dead and Rep. Gabrielle Giffords gravely wounded.
“Let me say one thing, because people tend to [...]

Press | Brian J. Buchanan | November 17, 2006

Founder shares cautionary tale of libel in cyberspace

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Although the First Amendment enables the American people
to make the country better by exercising their freedom of expression, “that
freedom of expression is not absolute,” the First Amendment Center founder said
today in the last of six “Conversations with John Seigenthaler.”
Speaking to about a hundred enrollees in the Vanderbilt Retirement Learning
program, Seigenthaler posed [...]

Speech | Brian J. Buchanan | November 10, 2006

To some, ‘obscene’ art not to be seen, heard

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — History shows censors going to great lengths to restrict art, painting, drama, film, dance and photography. How far does the First Amendment go in protecting them?
First Amendment Center Founder John Seigenthaler considered that question today at the center in the fifth in his series of lectures exploring the history of First Amendment [...]

First Amendment News | Brian J. Buchanan | October 20, 2006

‘Sex and politics’ as news is hardly new

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Scandals involving politicians’ sex lives have been seen as fair game by journalists since the beginning of the Republic, First Amendment Center Founder John Seigenthaler said today at the First Amendment Center.
In “Freedom of the Press: ‘A Set of Infamous Scribblers,’” second in his series of lectures exploring the history of First [...]

First Amendment News | Brian J. Buchanan | September 30, 2002

Robert MacNeil decries decline of news judgment

Robert MacNeil delivers Seigenthaler Center dedication address as Freedom Forum Chairman and CEO Charles Overby, center, and First Amendment Center Founder John Seigenthaler look on.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Veteran broadcast journalist Robert MacNeil attacked what he regarded as the takeover of news judgment by bottom-line considerations in his dedication address on Sept. 26 for the John [...]

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About The First Amendment Center

We support the First Amendment and build understanding of its core freedoms through education, information and entertainment.

The center serves as a forum for the study and exploration of free-expression issues, including freedom of speech, of the press and of religion, and the rights to assemble and to petition the government.

Founded by John Seigenthaler, the First Amendment Center is an operating program of the Freedom Forum and is associated with the Newseum and the Diversity Institute. The center has offices in the John Seigenthaler Center at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., and at the Newseum in Washington, D.C.

The center’s programs, including the Religious Freedom Education Project at the Newseum, provide education and information to the public and groups including First Amendment scholars and experts, educators, government policy makers, legal experts and students. The center is nonpartisan and does not lobby, litigate or provide legal advice. See First Amendment Center Fact Sheet and FAQs. See internships info.

The center’s website, www.firstamendmentcenter.org, is one of the most authoritative sources of news, information and commentary in the nation on First Amendment issues. It features daily updates on news about First Amendment-related developments, as well as detailed reports about U.S. Supreme Court cases involving the First Amendment, and commentary, analysis and special reports on free expression, press freedom and religious-liberty issues. Support the work of the First Amendment Center.

1 For All

1 for All is a national nonpartisan program designed to build understanding and support for First Amendment freedoms. 1 for All provides teaching materials to the nation’s schools, supports educational events on America’s campuses and reminds the public that the First Amendment serves everyone, regardless of faith, race, gender or political leanings. It is truly one amendment for all. Visit 1 for All at http://1forall.us/

Help tomorrow’s citizens find their voice: Teach the First Amendment

The most basic liberties guaranteed to Americans – embodied in the 45 words of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution – assure Americans a government that is responsible to its citizens and responsive to their wishes.

These 45 words are as alive and important today as they were more than 200 years ago. These liberties are neither liberal nor conservative, Democratic nor Republican – they are the basis for our representative democratic form of government.

We know from studies beginning in 1997 by the nonpartisan First Amendment Center, and from studies commissioned by the Knight Foundation and others, that few adult Americans or high school students can name the individual five freedoms that make up the First Amendment.

The lesson plans – drawn from materials prepared by the Newseum and the First Amendment Center – will draw young people into an exploration of how their freedoms began and how they operate in today’s world. Students will discuss just how far individual rights extend, examining rights in the school environment and public places. The lessons may be used in history and government, civics, language arts and journalism, art and debate classes. They may be used in sections or in their entirety. Many of these lesson plans indicate an overall goal, offer suggestions on how to teach the lesson and list additional resources and enrichment activities.

See more about lesson plans.

First Amendment Moot Court Competition

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution – the cornerstone of American democracy – is the focus of the National First Amendment Moot Court Competition. Recognized as one of the nation's finest constitutional-law competitions, this annual event features a current First Amendment controversy.

During the two-day competition in February, each team will participate in a minimum of four rounds, arguing a hypothetical based on a current First Amendment controversy before panels of accomplished jurists, legal scholars and attorneys.

Past participants in the National First Amendment Moot Court Competition have represented law schools nationwide, from Brooklyn Law School to Duke University to Arizona State to Harvard.

The 22nd Annual National First Amendment Moot Court Competition is Feb. 16-17, 2012. See registration information and details about the competition.

FIRST AMENDMENT CENTER ARCHIVES

State of the First Amendment survey reports

The State of the First Amendment surveys, commissioned since 1997 by the First Amendment Center and Newseum, are a regular check on how Americans view their first freedoms of speech, press, assembly, religion and petition.

The periodic surveys examine public attitudes toward freedom of speech, press, religion and the rights of assembly and petition; and sample public opinion on contemporary issues involving those freedoms. See the reports.