NPR’s Margot Adler filed this report on the current New York Theatre Workshop production of Top Secret: The Battle for the Pentagon Papers. Download the audio here.
Adler quotes from the March 3, 2010 post-show discussion with David Rudenstine, Todd Gitlin, and Steve Wasserman, in which these scholars contrasted the historical context in which the play takes place with the different political climate that exists today.
In Spring 2010, the Center on Communication Leadership & Policy hosted TOP SECRET TALKS, post-show discussions that featured Daniel Ellsberg, James Goodale, and more. More info/audio on our blog. Read More
The Nixon Adminstration had several options when confronted with the Pentagon Papers leak — and may have chosen the least productive response possible Read More
“The Pentagon Papers” as a term references the 7,000-page, 47-volume, 2.5 million-word product of the ‘Vietnam History Task Force’. Read More
The Supreme Court decided on First Amendment Grounds that prior restraint could not prevent publication of the Pentagon Papers, even though the information related to defense and national security. Read More
Government leaks of confidential information can be self-interested, done in the interest of one’s superior, or made as attacks against other figures or departments. Read More
The right to publish the Pentagon Papers was viewed as a triumph for free press, but the press’s constant duty to deal carefully with national security has led to many other moments of conflict with the government. Read More