Ken Paulson, president of the Freedom Forum, Newseum and Diversity Institute, leads a session on the First Amendment at the University of South Florida on Thursday, November 4. Kenny Irby / The Poynter Institute

More than 150 participated in the event in which they answered questions testing their knowledge of the First Amendment. Kenny Irby / The Poynter Instititute

Paulson, former editor of USA Today, partnered with John Siegenthaler, founder of the First Amendment Center in the presentation. The two introduced 1 for All, a new campaign that features ads that “celebrate freedom in America and the ways we exercise those freedoms in our daily lives.” Kenny Irby / The Poynter Institute

The 90-minute presentation included elements of history, pop culture and music to quiz the audience. According to the 1 for All campaign, “The First Amendment gives us freedom of speech, but it also provides freedom to tweet. It protects political speeches, but it also guarantees our right to sing, dance and perform.” Kenny Irby / The Poynter Institute

John Seigenthaler and Ken Paulson engaged a crowd of more than 150 students, educators and community members in a discussion centered on “raising the level of understanding and appreciation” of the First Amendment. Eugene Patterson, chairman emeritus of Poynter, was among those in attendance at the Nov. 4 event on the University of South Florida on the St. Petersburg campus.

During the event Paulson and Seigenthaler quizzed the audience on the intricacies of the First Amendment—which included a variety of misconceptions and legal challenges.

“We often lose sight of or lack a clear understanding of the First Amendment,” Seigenthaler said. “As Americans, we’ve exchanged power of the government for power of the people.”

Paulson echoed these sentiments as he stressed the importance of the First Amendment as the “core of who we are as a nation.”

“The true path to freedom in America is knowing what is true and what is not.” Paulson said.

The duo the highlighted the history of the First Amendment—citing that the story of Betsy Ross creating the American flag as an early example of a story going viral— while presenting its role in a modern context—emphasizing that the Communications Decency Act of 1997 guarantees the Internet is protected by the First Amendment.