Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 17 › Conversation 017-025
Nixon phone call with an unidentified caller on Stewart J.O. Alsop
Friday, December 24, 1971 · 4:55 PM–4:57 PM ET · White House Telephone · 8 sec
AI Summary
President Nixon instructed the White House operator to place an outgoing telephone call to journalist Stewart J.O. Alsop. This brief administrative interaction served as the initiation of a direct line of communication between the President and the prominent political columnist. No further discussion occurred during this recording segment.
Audio
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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.
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NARA Description
On December 24, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 4:55 pm and 4:57 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 017-025 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 17-25
Date: December 24, 1971
Time: Unknown between 4:55 pm and 4:57 pm
Location: White House Telephone
The President talked with the White House operator.
Request for a call to Stewart J.O. AlsopAlso recorded on December 24, 1971
- 017-022 4:34 PM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, Edward C. Nixon, and Gaye Lynne (Woods) Nixon talked on the telephone from 4:34 pm to 4:39 pm.
- 017-023 4:39 PM · 4 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 4:39 pm and 4:41 pm.
- 017-024 4:41 PM · 13 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Donald H. Rumsfeld talked on the telephone from 4:41 pm to 4:55 pm.
- 017-026 4:57 PM · 14 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 4:57 pm.
- 017-027 4:57 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 4:57 pm and 5:01 pm.
- 017-028 5:01 PM · 7 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. talked on the telephone from 5:01 pm to 5:08 pm.
- 017-029 5:09 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, and W. Clement Stone talked on the telephone from 5:09 pm to 5:10 pm.
- 017-030 5:10 PM · 10 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 5:10 pm and 5:18 pm.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 017-025, December 24, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/017-025 (accessed October 12, 2026).