February 9, 1973

On February 8, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon and Lyndon K. Allin talked on the telephone at 9:52 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 043-052 of the White House Tapes.

President Nixon telephoned Lyndon K. “Mort” Allin to offer birthday greetings and express appreciation for his strenuous work in managing media relations. The pair discussed the administration's adversarial relationship with outlets like Time and Newsweek, with Nixon emphasizing that the media bears a responsibility to understand the administration's perspective. The conversation concluded with a brief exchange regarding Allin's recent attendance at a Debbie Reynolds performance.