Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 319 › Conversation 319-014
Nixon & Ziegler on Press Strategy and 1972 Presidential Campaign
Monday, February 7, 1972 · 4:44 PM–4:49 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building · 4 min
AI Summary
President Nixon met with Press Secretary Ronald Ziegler to establish a media strategy regarding the 1972 presidential campaign. Nixon instructed Ziegler to adopt a policy of refusing to comment on statements made by other political candidates to avoid entanglement in campaign rhetoric. Additionally, the pair briefly discussed personnel and personal associations to ensure the administration maintained a clear public record regarding outside influences.
Audio
Transcript (AI-generated)
This transcript is incomplete. The transcription skipped stretches of speech — roughly 1 minute of this recording (about 40% of it) is represented by only a few words. Listen to the audio rather than relying on the text below; a corrected transcript is queued.
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NARA Description
On February 7, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 4:44 pm to 4:49 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 319-014 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 319-14 Date: February 7, 1972 Time: 4:44 pm - 4:49 pm Location: Executive Office Building The President talked with Ronald L. Ziegler. [See also Conversation No. 20-50]
Also recorded on February 7, 1972
- 319-012 4:40 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 4:40 pm to 4:43 pm.
- 319-013 4:43 PM · 3 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 4:43 pm and 4:44 pm.
- 020-050 4:44 PM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler talked on the telephone from 4:44 pm to 4:49 pm.
- 020-051 4:49 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 4:49 pm and 4:52 pm.
- 319-015 4:49 PM · 43 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 4:49 pm and 4:52 pm.
- 319-016 4:49 PM · 3 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 4:49 pm and 4:52 pm.
- 319-017 4:49 PM · 33 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Rose Mary Woods met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 4:49 pm and 4:52 pm.
- 319-018 4:52 PM · 49 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Thelma C. ("Pat") (Ryan) Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 4:52 pm to 4:53 pm.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 319-014, February 7, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/319-014 (accessed October 1, 2026).