Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 38 › Conversation 038-107

Ziegler & Dean on Watergate scandal and Public relations

Thursday, April 19, 1973 · 12:29 PM–12:48 PM ET · White House Telephone · 1 min

ParticipantsZiegler, Ronald L.; Dean, John W., IIIConversation038-107 on Tape 38StartThursday, April 19, 1973 at 12:29 PMEndThursday, April 19, 1973 at 12:48 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 038-107 ↗

AI Summary

Press Secretary Ronald Ziegler and White House Counsel John Dean coordinate their messaging regarding the unfolding Watergate scandal. Ziegler informs Dean of his intent to adhere to a consistent public posture, emphasizing that the administration's goal is to uncover the truth and cooperate with the grand jury rather than seeking a scapegoat. The pair discusses the necessity of maintaining this unified narrative during upcoming press briefings.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Hi, John.
Hi, Ron.
Saw your statement.
Any problem with it?
No, I don't think so.
I'm going to...
I just think you're in a position where you can't issue anything.
I asked it to be phoned over to you as it was going out.
I got it.
And thank you for doing that.
I'm going to, as we discussed before, take the same position that I took yesterday.
One thing, if they ask me about the scapegoat thing...
I'm going to say, and I've talked to the President about this, and he's authorized me to do it, is to say that our objective, based on the President's statement the other day, is not to find a scapegoat.
It's to find the truth, and we're going to fully cooperate with the grand jury process.
And then go on to, you know, hold the position I did before.
Have you briefed yet?
No.
The President's been in a meeting with Jewish leaders.
Okay.
All right.
Are you at home?
No, I'm here in the office.
Okay.
Good job.
Bye-bye.
Bye.
Thank you.

NARA Description

On April 19, 1973, Ronald L. Ziegler and John W. Dean, III talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 12:29 pm and 12:48 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 038-107 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 38-107

Date: April 19, 1973
Time: Unknown between 12:29 pm and 12:48 pm
Location: White House Telephone

Ronald L. Ziegler talked with John W. Dean, III.

[See Conversation No. 902-5B]

     Watergate
          -Dean’s statement
          -Ziegler’s forthcoming press briefing
                -Questions
                                               -63-

                   NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

Also recorded on April 19, 1973

  • 038-106 12:29 PM · 1 min — Ronald L. Ziegler, White House operator, and President Richard M. Nixon talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 12:29 pm and 12:48 pm.
  • 902-005 12:29 PM · 20 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Ronald L. Ziegler, White House operator, and John W. Dean, III met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:29 pm and 12:48 pm.
  • 902-006 12:48 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:48 pm and 1:03 pm.
  • 902-007 12:48 PM · 21 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:48 pm and 1:03 pm.
  • 902-008 12:48 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:48 pm and 1:03 pm.
  • 902-009 1:03 PM · 25 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John D. Ehrlichman met in the Oval Office of the White House from 1:03 pm to 1:30 pm.
  • 902-010 1:30 PM · 29 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 1:30 pm and 1:36 pm.
  • 902-013 1:30 PM · 2 min — unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 1:30 pm and 1:36 pm.

All 54 conversations from April 19, 1973 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 038-107, April 19, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/038-107 (accessed October 12, 2026).