Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 496 › Conversation 496-001
Nixon White House recording on Oval Office and Security
Monday, May 10, 1971 · 8:00 AM–12:46 PM ET · Oval Office · 4 min
AI Summary
This recording captures an unidentified individual speaking in the Oval Office regarding unspecified personal distress, logistical confusion, and a vague concern about a lack of security at an emergency center. The dialogue is largely incoherent, focusing on an unidentified person's request and the speaker's emotional instability or fear. Due to the lack of context and unintelligible transcript content, no specific policy decisions or historical actions are discernible from this exchange.
- Oval Office
- Security
- Emergency center
- Communication difficulties
Audio
Transcript (AI-generated)
This transcript is incomplete. The transcription skipped stretches of speech — roughly 2 minutes of this recording (about 52% 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.
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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.
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NARA Description
On May 10, 1971, unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:00 am and 12:46 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 496-001 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 496-001 Date: May 10, 1971 Time: Unknown between 8:00 am and 12:46 pm Location: Oval Office Unknown persons met. ********************************************************************** [Previous archivists categorized this section as unintelligible. It has been rereviewed and released 05/17/2019.] [Unintelligible] [496-001-w001] [Duration: 3m 39s] [This portion of the tape is mostly tape noise with some background conversation. ] ********************************************************************** The unknown persons left at an unknown time before 12:46 pm
Also recorded on May 10, 1971
- 496-002 8:00 AM · 26 sec — unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:00 am and 12:46 pm.
- 496-003 8:00 AM · 9 min — unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:00 am and 12:46 pm.
- 496-004 8:00 AM · 3 min — United States Secret Service agents met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 8:00 am and 12:46 pm.
- 496-005 12:46 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John D. Ehrlichman met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:46 pm to 12:48 pm.
- 496-006 12:48 PM · 32 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:48 pm and 12:57 pm.
- 496-007 12:48 PM · 3 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:48 pm and 12:57 pm.
- 496-008 12:48 PM · 3 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:48 pm and 12:57 pm.
- 496-009 12:57 PM · 30 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:57 pm to 1:30 pm.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 496-001, May 10, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/496-001 (accessed October 3, 2026).