Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 250 › Conversation 250-031

Nixon & Haldeman on Henry Kissinger and Media relations

Friday, April 16, 1971 · 7:04 PM–7:05 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building · 44 sec

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob")Conversation250-031 on Tape 250 (tape position 04:00:40–04:01:36)StartFriday, April 16, 1971 at 7:04 PMEndFriday, April 16, 1971 at 7:05 PMRecording deviceOld Executive Office BuildingSourceNixon Library record for 250-031 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and H. R. Haldeman met briefly to discuss follow-up actions related to a previous conversation with Henry Kissinger and the administration's strategic response to media coverage. The discussion also touched upon preparations for an upcoming meeting with news editors. The dialogue remained informal, focusing on administrative coordination and media management tactics.

Audio

Download MP3 · 1.7 MB

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

Download transcript (.txt) · JSON data

You can actually test it with this director.
By the way, I have one other idea of this computer.
I've got a follow-up to someone here.
I'm not sure who it is, but it's sort of a good impression.
It's not about this.
It's sort of this point.
It's about this little... Well, basically, it's a book.
It's quite candid.
We didn't write it in the red, but we should.
We don't believe it, but it's true.
I don't get it.
I know they have less workers than you can get.
Don't worry about it.
All right, don't worry about it for the reason that I'm asking.
I mean, I gave you that question.

NARA Description

On April 16, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 7:04 pm to 7:05 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 250-031 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 250-31

Date: April 16, 1971
Time: 7:04 pm - 7:05 pm
Location: Executive Office Building

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

     President’s conversation with Henry A. Kissinger
          -Follow-up
          -Administration’s possible response to media

     Preparations for editors’ meeting

Also recorded on April 17, 1971

  • 042-057 7:04 PM · 38 sec — H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman and President Richard M. Nixon talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 7:04 pm and 7:05 pm.
  • 250-032 7:05 PM · 14 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 7:05 pm and 8:00 pm.
  • 250-033 7:05 PM · 2 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 7:05 pm and 8:00 pm.
  • 250-034 7:05 PM · 25 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 7:05 pm and 8:00 pm.
  • 001-106 10:26 PM · 31 sec — the White House operator, Manolo Sanchez, and President Richard M. Nixon talked on the telephone at 10:26 pm.
  • 001-107 10:45 PM · 5 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at 10:45 pm.
  • 001-108 10:45 PM · 9 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Henry A. Kissinger, and unknown person(s) talked on the telephone from 10:45 pm to 10:56 pm.
  • 001-109 10:56 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 10:56 pm and 11:01 pm.

All 49 conversations from April 17, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 250-031, April 17, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/250-031 (accessed October 3, 2026).