Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 880 › Conversation 880-001

Nixon & Ziegler on Press conference and David K. Bruce

Thursday, March 15, 1973 · 11:16 AM–11:19 AM ET · Oval Office · 2 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Ziegler, Ronald L.Conversation880-001 on Tape 880StartThursday, March 15, 1973 at 11:16 AMEndThursday, March 15, 1973 at 11:19 AMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 880-001 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Press Secretary Ronald L. Ziegler met to finalize preparations for an upcoming presidential press conference. They discussed the logistics of the event, including the opening format and the specific briefing materials to be provided to the press. A key focus of the discussion was the planned announcement regarding the appointment of Dr. David K. Bruce to lead the U.S. liaison office in the People's Republic of China.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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We had a signal that he was going to be on the other side of the room.
Yeah.
I'll go get the ready machine.

NARA Description

On March 15, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:16 am to 11:19 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 880-001 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 880-1

Date: March 15, 1973
Time: 11:16 am-11:19 am
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Ronald L. Ziegler.

       President's press conference
             -Preparations
                    -Format
                    -Start of press conference
             -Announcement of Dr. David K. Bruce's appointment US
              liaison office in People's Republic of China [PRC]
             -Background hand-outs
             -Briefing by President

Ziegler left at 11:19 am.

Also recorded on March 15, 1973

  • 416-035 10:39 AM · 14 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 10:39 am to 10:55 am.
  • 880-002 11:19 AM · 26 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 11:19 am and 11:22 am.
  • 880-025 11:22 AM · 37 sec — unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 11:22 am and 11:58 am.
  • 880-003 11:58 AM · 6 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:58 am to 12:05 pm.
  • 037-117 12:05 PM · 15 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 12:05 pm and 12:11 pm.
  • 880-004 12:05 PM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:05 pm and 12:11 pm.
  • 880-005 12:05 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:05 pm and 12:11 pm.
  • 037-118 12:11 PM · 58 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Ralph H. Cake talked on the telephone from 12:11 pm to 12:12 pm.

All 83 conversations from March 15, 1973 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 880-001, March 15, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/880-001 (accessed October 5, 2026).