Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 683 › Conversation 683-005
Bull & Butterfield on Press relations and Staff management
Monday, March 13, 1972 · 12:02 PM–12:05 PM ET · Oval Office
AI Summary
Stephen B. Bull and Alexander P. Butterfield met briefly in the Oval Office to coordinate administrative logistics regarding the President’s schedule and press relations. The participants reflected on the recurring nature of daily crises within the White House, noting the difficulty of managing competing perspectives among staff members. The discussion concluded without specific policy action, serving primarily as a brief exchange on the pressures of managing the President's operational environment.
Audio
Download MP3 (part 1) · 167.7 MB ·Download MP3 (part 2) · 168.1 MB ·Download MP3 (part 3) · 164.4 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 02:38:41 into the tape and ends around 02:39:53.
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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.
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NARA Description
On March 13, 1972, Stephen B. Bull, Alexander P. Butterfield, and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:02 pm and 12:05 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 683-005 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 683-5
Date: March 13, 1972
Time: Unknown between 12:02 pm and 12:05pm
Location: Oval Office
Stephen B. Bull met with Alexander P. Butterfield.
The President’s schedule
-Press
Bull talked with an unknown person at an unknown time between 12:01 pm and 12:05 pm
[Conversation No. 683-5A]
[End of telephone conversation]
Press Room
Bull and Butterfield left at an unknown time before 12:05 pm.Also recorded on March 13, 1972
- 021-050 11:16 AM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Croby S. Noyes talked on the telephone from 11:16 am to 11:21 am.
- 021-051 11:21 AM · 7 sec — H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 11:21 am and 3:50 pm.
- 021-052 11:21 AM · 2 min — H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman and Constance M. Stuart talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 11:21 am and 3:50 pm.
- 021-053 11:21 AM · 10 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 11:21 am and 3:50 pm.
- 683-006 12:02 PM · 14 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Stephen B. Bull, unknown person(s), Marina von Neumann Whitman, Dr. Robert Whitman, Malcolm Whitman, Laura Whitman, Josephine Pierce, Herbert Stein, Ezra Solomon, George P. Shultz, William L. Safire, Barbara H. Franklin, Paul McArdle, and White House photographer met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:02 pm and 12:17 pm.
- 683-007 12:18 PM · 50 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Ronald S. Berman, Leonard Garment, William J. Powell, and Manolo Sanchez met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:18 pm to 1:07 pm.
- 683-008 1:07 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 1:07 pm and 1:10 pm.
- 683-009 1:10 PM · 51 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, unknown person(s), Clark MacGregor, and Manolo Sanchez met in the Oval Office of the White House from 1:10 pm to 2:02 pm.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 683-005, March 13, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/683-005 (accessed October 3, 2026).