Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 346 › Conversation 346-001

Nixon & Ziegler on Press conference and Media relations

Wednesday, June 28, 1972 · 10:38 AM–10:40 AM ET · Old Executive Office Building · 5 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Ziegler, Ronald L.Conversation346-001 on Tape 346 (tape position 00:00:30–00:05:08)StartWednesday, June 28, 1972 at 10:38 AMEndWednesday, June 28, 1972 at 10:40 AMRecording deviceOld Executive Office BuildingSourceNixon Library record for 346-001 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Press Secretary Ronald Ziegler met to discuss the logistics and strategic timing of a forthcoming televised press conference to be held in the East Room. The discussion focused on balancing the reach of the viewing audience against potential interruptions to prime-time network programming. Nixon tasked Ziegler with finalizing the scheduling details while considering the impact of different time slots on West Coast and Midwest viewership.

Audio

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Position in tape: 00:00:30 – 00:05:08

part A, 0:28

346a.mp3
346b.mp3

NARA Description

On June 28, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 10:38 am to 10:40 am. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 346-001 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 346-1

Date: June 28, 1972
Time: 10:38-10:40 am
Location: Executive Office Building

The President met with Ronald . Ziegler.

     The President's schedule
          -Forthcoming press conference
                -Timing
                      -Television
                            -The President’s view
                            -Ziegler’s view
                            -West Coast
                            -Midwest
                            -Impact
                            -Ziegler’s announcement
                -Location
                      -East Room

Ziegler left at 10:40 am.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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I'd like to at 11 o'clock, I think, announce your press conference if that's possible.
I've also been thinking about the 7.30 time.
There's no network feature at 7.30.
All the news shows and so forth have been dead by 7.30.
It seems to me if we're going to do it on television
then we'd be far better off doing it at 9 o'clock.
I don't want to do it yet.
I want to get over with it.
I want to go at 7.30 because of the...
I don't want to presume that much in the prime time at this point.
I prefer to go 6.
Well, we did it before 7.30.
It's right after the networks.
Networks are finished.
You come right on.
You don't interfere in any prime time.
There's no problem with that.
There's one other point on 9 o'clock.
He wouldn't be cutting into any shows at 9.
I don't hold that in.
What do you cut at 7.30?
Nothing.
See, there's no network feed at 7.30.
They like to carry it.
They're going to carry it.
So what's the matter?
They prefer not to carry it at 7.30.
No, I didn't discuss it with them.
I just wanted to go over it.
advantages before we finally decided on 9 o'clock.
The advantage of 9 o'clock, of course, is large audiences, particularly the 6 o'clock time period on the West Coast, where you get the good radio, and we are in the news shows in the West at 9 o'clock.
The other thing is that you are not cutting into a movie or any shows, because all the networks at 9 o'clock have the programs started at that time, CBS, for example, and the movie numbers start at 9.
I'm sure they relay that
The other networks had our shows starting at 9, which I'm sure they would play, so I wanted you to be aware that we would not be cutting into a program.
Well, you remember we slushed them at 30, though, and then you have no problem at all delaying the show or anything.
That's right.
That's the beauty of that.
Well, I wanted to...
I don't think this one is, I mean, we can, we got this rule out going on at night when we want to, but I have no particular interest in this one.
I mean, it's not something where we're, where we have anything in particular.
Well, I just, I wanted to rephrase it because as long as you're doing it, the effort to do it before the cameras, no matter an hour or two, it's going to be much greater impact.
But I think it's also important that .
Now I didn't mean to time over.
I'll just say you'll have the press conference.
Yeah, why don't you do that?
Why don't we just do that?
No, you have a press conference tomorrow.
We'll be television.
We'll let you know at the time.
Yeah, we're working on the time.
I've had a 7.30 thing in the field.
And that's the big old problem that people are dealing with all the time.
Oh, it's very, very true.
Well, that may be a... See, there is that.
I realize that the only real losses to the West Coast amount, they don't matter.
So you've got 730, 630.
You hit 730, 630, you're hitting a very good audience.
You're hitting them right out there.
And we lose the West Coast.
You lose the West Coast.
Well, we don't lose the West Coast.
You get the news and all the rest, but you do lose a substantial amount of radio.
Right.
And a substantial amount of radio.
Sure do.
Right.
Well, let's think about it.
That's a good idea.
Well, we're going to have one of them.
I'll think a little bit more about it.
It'll be in the East Room.
It'll be in the East Room.

Also recorded on June 28, 1972

  • 026-025 10:40 AM · 5 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 10:40 am and 10:43 am.
  • 346-002 10:40 AM · 14 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 10:40 am and 10:43 am.
  • 026-026 10:43 AM · 43 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull talked on the telephone from 10:43 am to 10:44 am.
  • 346-003 10:43 AM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 10:43 am to 10:44 am.
  • 346-004 10:44 AM · 2 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 10:44 am and 11:16 am.
  • 346-005 10:44 AM · 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 10:44 am and 11:16 am.
  • 346-006 10:44 AM · 50 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 10:44 am and 11:16 am.
  • 346-007 10:44 AM · 34 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 10:44 am and 11:16 am.

All 39 conversations from June 28, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 346-001, June 28, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/346-001 (accessed November 14, 2026).