Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 269 › Conversation 269-027

Nixon & Haldeman on Press relations and Media strategy

Tuesday, August 3, 1971 · 1:47 PM–3:40 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob")Conversation269-027 onTape 269 (tape position 05:31:02–05:35:01)StartTuesday, August 3, 1971 at 1:47 PMEndTuesday, August 3, 1971 at 3:40 PMRecording deviceOld Executive Office BuildingSourceNixon Library record for 269-027 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and H. R. Haldeman consulted on strategic planning for an upcoming presidential press conference. They discussed utilizing a photo opportunity in the Oval Office with key advisors, including William Rogers, Henry Kissinger, and John Connally, as a tactical distraction to divert the press from the true focus of the event. The pair evaluated the timing and logistical implementation of this media management plan.

Audio

Download MP3 (part 1) · 111.8 MB ·Download MP3 (part 2) · 111.5 MB ·Download MP3 (part 3) · 111.8 MB ·Download MP3 (part 4) · 29.1 MB

This conversation has not yet been cut into its own clip, so the player above contains the full tape segment shared with neighbouring conversations. It begins about 05:31:02 into the tape and ends around 05:35:01.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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 · Timestamps are positions within the full tape recording.

5:31:02I can't do it today.

5:31:07But I'll have an opportunity to just make a note to him and tell him how I should do it.

5:31:21That's right.

5:34:28I was thinking that one good way to throw the press off the trail on tomorrow's thing would be to have a plural opportunity.

5:34:36I'm thinking of other ways that I could do that.

NARA Description

On August 3, 1971, 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 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 269-027 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 269-27

Date: August 3, 1971
Time: Unknown between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm
Location: Executive Office Building

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

     President's schedule
          -Forthcoming press conference, August 4, 1971
                 -Press
                      -Photo opportunity
                           -Ronald L. Ziegler
                           -Oval Office meeting
                                -William Rogers, Henry A. Kissinger, John B. Connally
                                -Timing

Also recorded on August 3, 1971

269-028 1:47 PM · 37 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 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.
269-029 1:47 PM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.
269-030 1:47 PM · 1 min — 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 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.
269-031 1:47 PM · 13 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.
269-032 1:47 PM · 8 min — 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 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.
269-033 1:47 PM · 10 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John D. Ehrlichman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.
269-034 1:47 PM · 5 min — 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 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.
269-035 1:47 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John D. Ehrlichman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:47 pm and 3:40 pm.

All 51 conversations from August 3, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 269-027, August 3, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/269-027 (accessed September 18, 2026).