Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 344 › Conversation 344-009
Nixon & Colson on Public relations and Media management
Tuesday, June 20, 1972 · 8:04 PM–8:22 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building
AI Summary
President Nixon and Charles Colson discuss strategies for managing media coverage and public perception regarding ongoing administration pressures. The conversation touches on the difficulties of coordinating effective messaging, with Nixon expressing a sense of defensive frustration while encouraging Colson to aggressively counter opposing narratives. The exchange highlights the intense, often erratic atmosphere within the White House as they navigate public and political challenges.
Audio
Download MP3 (part 1) · 111.9 MB ·Download MP3 (part 2) · 112.0 MB ·Download MP3 (part 3) · 33.4 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 00:49:50 into the tape and ends around 00:57:02.
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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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
NARA Description
On June 20, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 8:04 pm to 8:22 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 344-009 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 344-9
Date: June 20, 1972
Time: 8:04-8:22 pm
Location: Old Executive Office Building
The President talked with Charles W. Colson.
[See Conversation No. 25-93;one item has been withdrawn.]
Conversation 344-34
Date: June 20, 1972
Time: Unknown between 8:22 and 8:42 pm
Location: Old Executive Office Building
The President spoke with an unknown person [Alexander M. Haig, Jr. ?].
[See Conversation No. 25-93]Also recorded on June 21, 1972
- 025-093 8:04 PM · 17 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson talked on the telephone from 8:04 pm to 8:21 pm.
- 344-010 8:22 PM · 31 sec — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 8:22 pm and 8:42 pm.
- 344-034 8:22 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 8:22 pm and 8:42 pm.
- 025-094 8:42 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone from 8:42 pm to 8:50 pm.
- 344-011 8:42 PM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 8:42 pm to 8:50 pm.
- 344-012 8:50 PM · 6 min — President Richard M. Nixon met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 8:50 pm and 11:22 pm.
- 739-001 9:02 AM · 19 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 9:02 am and 9:10 am.
- 025-095 9:05 AM · 18 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 9:05 am and 9:10 am.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 344-009, June 21, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/344-009 (accessed September 30, 2026).