Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 3 › Conversation 003-204

Nixon phone call with Haldeman on Media strategy and Public relations

Monday, May 31, 1971 · 6:38 PM–6:42 PM ET · White House Telephone · 3 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob")Conversation003-204 on Tape 3 (tape position 05:12:16–05:15:32)StartMonday, May 31, 1971 at 6:38 PMEndMonday, May 31, 1971 at 6:42 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 003-204 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and H.R. Haldeman discuss a strategic plan to dominate media coverage throughout the summer of 1971 by scheduling regular radio and television statements on weekends. Nixon directs Haldeman to develop a program that utilizes Saturday and Sunday for public appearances and statements to avoid competing with weekday news cycles. They also address the logistical coordination of drafting materials with Patrick Buchanan and Raymond Price for upcoming events, including a presidential trip to Tulsa.

Audio

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Transcript (AI-generated)

This transcript was generated automatically by AI (WhisperX) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Names and numbers are often wrong; speakers are not identified. Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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· Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).
Yeah.
I have Mr. Haldeman now, sir.
Yeah.
Hello.
Hello.
Did you call me?
No, sir.
No.
I was returning your call.
They said you had called at 6 o'clock.
Oh, yes, yes.
I think I covered everything in the other one.
I think it's the same call, you know, which we had at the office.
Okay.
Okay.
Pat's going to have the stuff, I guess, by 7.
Oh, seven now.
Yeah, I was just waiting for it.
Well, he said he was still humping when I left, and he said he'd have it in by seven.
It's all right.
Just hold just a minute.
One thing I was going to suggest is this, that it's, I think it's very important to start immediately with regard to that Saturday operation.
Saturday or both, and incidentally you can use both days to use Saturday and Sunday for purposes of radio or major statements.
that we don't want to elevate to the other side.
Or, as a matter of fact, for appearances, as we did at West Point, that do elevate to the other side.
But will you develop a program?
Because Ray's stuff comes in a little slow.
But I think there's no reason, Bob, we can't be on every Saturday for Sunday or every Sunday for Monday or both for the whole summer months.
And that's a hell of a big audience.
It is, and it's just so easy to dominate.
You can dominate both on radio.
And take these holiday weekends.
You realize anything we do, any statement I make, you can put on radio.
So you put the radio statement out.
You have radio, and you have the TV.
Possibility, if we do a speech.
Unfortunately, looking at this week...
All we've got is Tulsa.
That ain't particularly good.
No, but you'll get TV on that.
Well, it might not be too bad because it'll be friendly.
But what I meant is it isn't an upbeat forum.
Yeah.
No, it's not bad.
It's not bad, though.
But let's try to figure out right down the line every weekend, Saturday and Sunday, throw it in there, you know, and not compete during the week.
I mean, let that go the other way.
Yep.
It sure is wide open then, isn't it?
Yeah, it really is.
And we've got plenty of things in the rest of the week that we can put out.
Well, we inevitably have stuff during the week, no matter what.
We have to make appearances.
There's just no way to avoid it.
But Saturday and Sunday, we should make up appearances.
That's the whole point.
Yeah.
Right.
Okay.
Okay.

NARA Description

On May 31, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone from 6:38 pm to 6:42 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 003-204 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 003-204

Date: May 31, 1971
Time: 6:38 pm - 6:42 pm
Location: White House Telephone

The President talked with H.R. (“Bob”) Haldeman.

[See Conversation No. 254-021]

     President's call

     President's speech
          -Patrick J. Buchanan's work

     [Pause]

     A Saturday/Sunday operation
          -Radio, press statements

       Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542

           -President's West Point trip
           -Raymond K. Price, Jr.
           -Summer 1971 events
           -Audience
           -Holiday weekends
           -Radio and television
                 -President's statements
                 -President's speeches
                 -President's Tulsa trip
                       -Publicity
           -Compared with weekday operation

Also recorded on May 31, 1971

  • 003-203 6:30 PM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon and William P. Rogers talked on the telephone from 6:30 pm to 6:38 pm.
  • 254-020 6:30 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and William P. Rogers met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 6:30 pm to 6:38 pm.
  • 254-021 6:38 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 6:38 pm to 6:42 pm.
  • 003-205 6:42 PM · 10 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 6:42 pm and 6:50 pm.
  • 254-022 6:42 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 6:42 pm and 6:50 pm.
  • 254-023 6:42 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 6:42 pm and 6:50 pm.
  • 003-206 6:50 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Tricia Nixon Cox talked on the telephone from 6:50 pm to 6:52 pm.
  • 254-024 6:50 PM · 47 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Tricia Nixon Cox met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 6:50 pm to 6:52 pm.

All 50 conversations from May 31, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 003-204, May 31, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/003-204 (accessed October 12, 2026).