Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 793 › Conversation 793-011

Nixon & Haldeman on Press conferences and Media relations

Friday, October 6, 1972 · 10:37 AM–11:20 AM ET · Oval Office ·5 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Haldeman, H. R. ("Bob")Conversation793-011 onTape 793StartFriday, October 6, 1972 at 10:37 AMEndFriday, October 6, 1972 at 11:20 AMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 793-011 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and H. R. Haldeman met to assess the effectiveness of the President's October 5 press conference and discuss general media relations strategy. They analyzed the public impact of Nixon's messaging regarding potential tax increases, fiscal policy, and John Ehrlichman’s previous statements. Ultimately, the two debated the utility of presidential press conferences, with Nixon expressing frustration over media interpretation while acknowledging the necessity of communicating policy points to the electorate.

Audio

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Well, the Thais are the most gracious people.
I think I don't know, but they're the civilized people.
The Chinese are civilized.
The Thais are the most civilized people in the world.
Grace.
Charm.
Yeah, sure.
You should have worked for them.
Christ.
All of them.
All of them.
Yeah, but all of them are the society.
Well, I was trying to say that...
I think it's really come down to it, but I don't know.
The only thing to do is to never appear before the press at all.
The only thing to do is to make the assholes appear on television.
That's really what you have to do.
Yes.
Well, except we have a different purpose.
Except for the fact that at the present time, I think I'd be concerned about whether or not we get those people going on television and being badgered and harassed.
uh, you know, about issues and so forth, and I don't think we don't need to.
I think in this instance, uh, they, uh, I mean, it doesn't think, I don't know if the public is one shit or the other, a surprise on televised press conference.
I don't think, you know, they always run that in there.
What the hell is a press conference?
But they always say that.
I don't, I understand that, but that doesn't give a damn what the other press conference is any time.
I think you're right.
Go.
well, you understand, well, except for the business of, well, isn't he talking out, or why isn't he hiding, why isn't he saying something, and so forth.
I'm not sure that goes across either.
Do you think so?
No.
Well, the other side of the coin, well, you've got to do something, don't you?
And so maybe this is better to do than something else.
Maybe it's better to use these people as the, shall we say, the end man, rather than... Well, I think it is.
And then you've got, like, even on the TV, you've got...
half a dozen, well, four or five points of yours crossed.
Did those points register with anybody?
Probably not.
Probably not.
They were still scored.
The viewer knows that you said that you're for this and you're against that and you're going to do this and you're not going to do that.
You ask him, what were those things?
Well, I don't remember, but I thought they would sound pretty good to me.
And you get those points across because the reporters go down the list.
They say what you covered in those documents.
They say that you said there were going to be no taxes.
That's true.
So they said you only...
They did distort that one.
That was one we were...
I think.
There you can say we were strict.
But you didn't say they were over one year.
Which you did.
But the question never arose as to whether you were talking about one year.
You were just... You were only talking about fiscal 73.
Because of the question.
Regardless of the...
And that's the point you were talking to.
If anybody had asked you, instead of reporting it that way, they should say, Mr.
Person, are you backing off of Mr. Ehrman's statement that there would be no increase in four years?
He would have said, of course not.
He said, my goal is no tax increase next year or in the next four years.
And there will not be a presidential tax increase in that period.
The problem is, will there be a congressional increase?
But we didn't, that didn't hurt us.
I think you're right.
I think there are people over here.
I don't know what the hell.
The discouraging thing is that we know how much good it could have done us.
If everybody in America could have sat in the room yesterday, we would have scored a large gold star.
But everybody didn't.
And they couldn't have.
And if everybody had, it wouldn't happen the way it happened.
So it's a different thing.
But that's why I'm saying if everybody knew you like the people that work around you, know you, then 100% I would vote for you.
But they won't.
They never will.
Why worry about that?

NARA Description

On October 6, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the Oval Office of the White House from 10:37 am to 11:20 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 793-011 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 793-11

Date: October 6, 1972
Time: 11:23 am - 11:34 am
Location: Oval Office

The President met with H.R. (“Bob”) Haldeman.

         Thais
             -The President’s view
                 -Comparisons to the Chinese

         Media and press relations
            -Ronald L. Ziegler
                 -News summary
            -Charles W. Colson
            -Television [TV]
                 -The President's appearances
                     -Press conference
                          -Public interest

                                       (rev. Nov-03)

                 -The President’s October 5, 1972 press conference
                     -Points made
                         -Tax increase
                              -Fiscal Year [FY] 1973
                                   -Debt limit
                         -John D. Ehrlichman
                              -Presidential increase
                              -Congressional increase
                     -Success
                         -Viewership

*****************************************************************

BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2
[Personal returnable]
[Duration: 6m 43s ]

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2

*****************************************************************

Haldeman left at 11:34 am.

Also recorded on October 6, 1972

  • 793-007 9:30 AM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 9:30 am to 10:03 am.
  • 793-008 10:03 AM · 25 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at 10:03 am.
  • 793-009 10:03 AM · 30 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Ronald L. Ziegler, White House operator, Charles W. Colson, Allan Shivers, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 10:03 am and 10:06 am.
  • 031-008 10:06 AM · 16 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 10:06 am and 10:10 am.
  • 793-010 10:06 AM · 44 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Pote Sarasin, Anand Panyarachun, John H. Holdridge, White House photographer, and Manolo Sanchez met in the Oval Office of the White House from 10:06 am to 10:36 am.
  • 031-009 10:14 AM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Allan Shivers talked on the telephone from 10:14 am to 10:16 am.
  • 793-012 11:23 AM · 40 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Patrick Hillery, Sean O'Heideian, Col. Richard T. Kennedy, Marion H. Smoak, John D. Moore, Ronald L. Ziegler, White House photographer, Stephen B. Bull, and Richard A. Moore met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:23 am to 11:34 am.
  • 793-013 11:34 AM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:34 am to 12:15 pm.

All 64 conversations from October 6, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 793-011, October 6, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/793-011 (accessed September 18, 2026).