Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 246 › Conversation 246-011

Nixon & Ziegler on William L. Calley Jr. and Public relations

Wednesday, April 7, 1971 · 2:07 PM–2:11 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building ·57 sec

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Ziegler, Ronald L.Conversation246-011 onTape 246 (tape position 03:16:28–03:19:47)StartWednesday, April 7, 1971 at 2:07 PMEndWednesday, April 7, 1971 at 2:11 PMRecording deviceOld Executive Office BuildingSourceNixon Library record for 246-011 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Press Secretary Ronald Ziegler coordinated the messaging strategy regarding Lieutenant William L. Calley, Jr., specifically emphasizing the need to distance the administration from the prosecutor, Captain Aubrey M. Daniel, III. Nixon directed Ziegler to finalize technical preparations for his upcoming televised address, including strict instructions to edit the broadcast length to exactly 50 seconds. The President emphasized a concise media rollout, instructing Ziegler to prioritize visual impact and strictly manage the dissemination of the speech.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Yeah.
Yeah.
I don't know.
Be sure you've got that tablet thing.
How'd it go?
I guess we'll get to the point where we come down to the side of the property.
We don't want to say that we're, you know, that's very bad.
It's the grace of the court, the grace of the prosecutor, the rest of us.
I don't want to do that.
I'm not going to do that.
I'm not going to do that.
I'm not going to do that.
And when I finish the broadcast, Ron, I want to cut the time down to the oldest part, which is 50 seconds.
And then take a picture that I'm on, and send it everywhere.
And then you just cut them off and go and smash the bottom up.
They're that long.
Screw them.
And then the broadcast is the same.
I'll see you then.
Thank you.

NARA Description

On April 7, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 2:07 pm to 2:11 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 246-011 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 246-011

Date: April 7, 1971
Time: 2:07 pm - 2:11 pm
Location: Executive Office Building

The President talked with Ronald L. Ziegler

     Lieutenant William L. Calley, Jr.
           -President’s policy
                -Prosecutor, Captain Aubrey M. Daniel, III

     President’s schedule
           -Forthcoming speech April 7, 1971

Also recorded on April 7, 1971

  • 246-008 2:00 PM · 12 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 2:00 pm and 2:07 pm.
  • 246-009 2:00 PM · 21 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 2:00 pm and 2:07 pm.
  • 246-010 2:00 PM · 7 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 2:00 pm and 2:07 pm.
  • 246-012 2:11 PM · 28 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 2:11 pm and 3:10 pm.
  • 246-013 2:11 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 2:11 pm and 3:10 pm.
  • 246-014 2:11 PM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon talked with an unknown person(s) on the telephone in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time around 2:11 pm.
  • 246-015 3:10 PM · 35 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 3:10 pm to 3:11 pm.
  • 246-016 3:11 PM · 46 sec — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 3:11 pm and 3:15 pm.

All 42 conversations from April 7, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 246-011, April 7, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/246-011 (accessed September 18, 2026).