Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 331 › Conversation 331-032
Nixon & Ziegler on Anti-war movement and Public relations
Wednesday, April 19, 1972 · 2:17 PM–2:18 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building · 47 sec
AI Summary
President Nixon and Press Secretary Ronald Ziegler discuss strategies to address media coverage of anti-war protests on university campuses. Nixon proposes a rhetorical counter-attack that highlights the perceived hypocrisy of demonstrators for criticizing the United States rather than the enemy. The pair decides to have a political surrogate, such as Barry Goldwater, deliver this critique to the public to effectively challenge the protestors' stance.
- Anti-war movement
- Public relations
- Barry Goldwater
- Media strategy
- Student protests
- Vietnam War
Audio
NARA Description
On April 19, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 2:17 pm to 2:18 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 331-032 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 331-32 Date: April 19, 1972 Time: 2:17 pm - 2:18 pm Location: Executive Office Building The President talked with Ronald L. Ziegler. [See Conversation No. 23-37]
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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.
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Also recorded on April 19, 1972
- 023-034 1:49 PM · 8 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 1:49 pm and 2:11 pm.
- 331-027 1:49 PM · 9 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 1:49 pm and 2:11 pm.
- 331-028 1:49 PM · 36 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:49 pm and 2:11 pm.
- 023-035 2:11 PM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler talked on the telephone from 2:11 pm to 2:16 pm.
- 331-030 2:11 PM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 2:11 pm to 2:16 pm.
- 023-036 2:16 PM · 10 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 2:16 pm and 2:17 pm.
- 331-031 2:16 PM · 6 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 2:16 pm and 2:17 pm.
- 023-037 2:17 PM · 46 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler talked on the telephone from 2:17 pm to 2:18 pm.
Related conversations
- Nixon alone in the Oval Office on Vietnam War and Student protests April 17, 1972 · 4 min
- Nixon phone call with Colson on Vietnam Peace Settlement and Public Relations January 23, 1973 · 11 min
- Nixon, Colson & Kissinger on Vietnam War and Paris Peace Accords January 23, 1973 · 1 hr 1 min
- Nixon & Haldeman on Vietnam War and Anti-war movement April 19, 1971 · 40 min
- Nixon, Arends & Ford on Vietnam War and Congressional relations June 14, 1971 · 38 min
- Nixon, Kissinger & Ziegler on Vietnam War and Public relations February 9, 1972 · 3 min
Cite this conversation
Conversation 331-032, April 19, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives (NAID 417186393). Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/331-032 (accessed November 15, 2026).