Fifty years ago today, on 6/13/71, the first set of excerpts from the Pentagon Papers was published in the New York Times: Vietnam Archive: Pentagon Study Traces 3 Decades of Growing U. S. Involvement. Leaked by Daniel Ellsberg, the 42-volume top-secret study revealed the history of Vietnam decision-making and the lies that were told by four U.S. presidents to cultivate public support for the war.
Selected Media Coverage
New York Times special report on the 50th anniversary of the Pentagon Papers:
—‘We’re Going to Publish’: An Oral History of the Pentagon Papers, New York Times, 6/9/21
—The Secrets and Lies of the Vietnam War, Exposed in One Epic Document, by Elizabeth Becker, New York Times, 6/9/21
—Leaning on Journalists and Targeting Sources, for 50 Years, by David Sanger, New York Times, 6/9/21
—Secrets That Were No Secret, Lessons That Were Not Learned, by Andrew J. Bacevich (guest essay), New York Times, 6/13/21
Fifty Years Ago the Pentagon Papers Shocked America — and They Still Matter Today, by Christopher B. Daly, Washington Post, 6/13/21
50 Years Ago Today, Daniel Ellsberg’s Pentagon Papers Helped End the Vietnam War, by Chip Gibbons, Jacobin Magazine, 6/13/21
”I’ve never regretted doing it’: Daniel Ellsberg on 50 years since leaking the Pentagon Papers, by David Smith, The Guardian (UK), 6/13/21
The 50th Anniversary of the Pentagon Papers, Fresh Air, National Public Radio (audio), 6/18/21
Pentagon Papers at 50: Daniel Ellsberg on Risking Life in Jail to Expose U.S. Lies About Vietnam War, Democracy Now, 6/14/21
Fifty Years Later, Pentagon Papers Still Speak Loudly about War and Government Untruths, by David M. Shribman, Boston Globe, 6/12/21
Daniel Ellsberg: The First Whistleblower, by Troy Bramston, The Australian, 6/12/21
Pentagon Papers at 50: Daniel Ellsberg on Risking Life in Jail to Expose U.S. Lies About Vietnam War, Democracy Now, 6/14/21
The Whistleblower, a five-part podcast series produced by The GroundTruth Project exploring Ellsberg’s life, career, and decision to leak the Pentagon Papers (Spring 2021)
The Whistleblower, a one-hour special broadcast by The GroundTruth Project, GBH Radio, 6/14/21
Truth, Dissent & the Legacy of Daniel Ellsberg, recordings from a two-day online conference organized by University of Massachusetts – Amherst to mark the 50th anniversary of the Pentagon Papers release – 4/30/21 to 5/1/21
The Pentagon Papers and Vietnam 50 Years Later: A Conversation with Daniel Ellsberg, Rep. Elizabeth Holtzman, Gar Alperovitz, and Barbara Myers, Vietnam Peace Commemoration, 6/13/21
50 years ago, the Pentagon Papers’ success hinged on a personal conversion to nonviolence, by Robert Levering, Waging Non-Violence, 6/14/21
‘Pentagon Papers’ Case, 50 Years On: Still a Victory for a Free Press, by James C. Goodale, The Hill, 6/13/21
The Pentagon Papers: Secrets, Lies and Leaks (podcast), Reveal, 5/22/21