Pentagon Papers

Daniel Ellsberg's Moral Courage Was Unsparing, Even of Himself

by Erik Baker

Turning against Vietnam wasn't Daniel Ellsberg's great moral achievement. That was his realization that he had to choose between moral conviction and maintaining his place in the ranks of elite decisionmakers. 

The Documents Daniel Ellsberg Didn't Leak

While famous for leaking the Pentagon Papers in 1971, the researcher and activist has revealed that he had another stash of secret papers—about American nuclear war planning—that he felt a duty to publicize. He never did release them, but is committed in his last days to work against nuclear war. 

50 Years Ago, Daniel Ellsberg — Who Leaked The Pentagon Papers — Surrendered At Boston Federal Court

Daniel Freudberg covered Daniel Ellsberg's trial as a teenager. Here, he recalls the experience and the real-time impact of the Pentagon Papers' publication. 

In Vietnam, the Pentagon Papers Are History Written by the Defeated

by Lien-Hang Nguyen

A Vietnamese historian explains how the Pentagon Papers have become a foundation of domestic histories of war (both before and during US involvement) even as the Vietnamese government has declined to release its own official histories of the conflict. 

50 Years Later, the Pentagon Papers Remain an Historic Landmark for Freedom of the Press

by Jared Schroeder

While democratic norms have, at times, seemed paper thin in recent years, the Court’s terse decision in the Pentagon Papers decision persists as a bulwark against government efforts to halt publication.

"We're Going to Publish": The New York Times' Oral History of the Pentagon Papers

From RAND Corporation leaker Daniel Ellsberg to first amendement litigator Floyd Abrams, the key players in the 1971 publication of the Pentagon papers reflect on their work 50 years later.  

Secrets That Were No Secret, Lessons That Were Not Learned

by Andrew Bacevich

The Pentagon Papers are a document of the hubris and ignorance of American military leaders in the Vietnam era, but Andrew Bacevich warns that the idea that global problems are amenable to being solved by American arms remains dangerously popular. 

Truth, Dissent & the Legacy of Daniel Ellsberg: Free, Open Online Conference April 30-May 1

A free online conference brings together more than two dozen distinguished historians, journalists, activists, whistleblowers, and former policymakers on the eve of the 50th anniversary of Ellsberg’s leak of the Pentagon Papers. Ellsberg himself will present the keynote. 

Now It Can Be Told: How Neil Sheehan Got the Pentagon Papers

Award-winning journalist Neil Sheehan told an interviewer the story of how he got the Pentagon Papers, on the condition that the story could not be published while he was alive. His passing this week opens up new knowledge in the history of press freedom and the Vietnam war.

Neil Sheehan, Reporter Who Obtained the Pentagon Papers, Dies at 84

Neil Sheehan's earned skepticism of the rightness of the American mission in Vietnam made him the reporter to whom Daniel Ellsberg leaked the Pentagon Papers in 1971. He won a Pulitzer Prize and a National Book Award for his volume "A Bright Shining Lie" about the war. 

'Modern-day Pentagon Papers’: Comparing the Afghanistan Papers to blockbuster Vietnam War study

Both studies were commissioned by obscure Defense Department agencies, Both are massive, and Both involved court battles, but 1971 was more dramatic. 

Gar Alperovitz played key secret role in release of the Pentagon Papers

Speaking publicly for the first time, the historian reveals the crucial role that he and a small band of others played in helping Daniel Ellsberg leak the documents to journalists.

Newton Minow recalls what happened to Rand when the Pentagon Papers came out

by Newton N. Minow

Nixon withdrew the think tank’s security clearance.

How a reporting mistake nearly derailed the Watergate investigation — and how journalists recovered

by Jon Marshall

Today’s journalists would do well to remember these lessons.

Behind the Pentagon Papers: The beginning of Nixon’s end

by Ken Hughes

What was Nixon trying to hide? Here’s a comprehensive timeline of his descent into paranoia and lawlessness.

Daniel Ellsberg Is Still Thinking About the Papers He Didn’t Get to Leak

by Andrew Rice

It turns out that Ellsberg also took many thousands of pages of documents pertaining to another subject: nuclear war.

Spielberg to debut movie about the Washington Post and the Pentagon Papers

The movie will be released in December.

Video of the Week: Daniel Ellsberg of Pentagon Papers Talks About Leaks

VICE News examines the Trump administration’s war on leakers, with the Pentagon Papers whistleblower.

Why Lawyers on both Sides of the Immigration Ban Should Be Studying the Pentagon Papers Case

by Emma Long

One lesson: The courts have a role to play even in cases involving national security.

CIA director misled FBI about how agency spied on Pentagon Papers leaker

CIA Director Richard Helms misled the FBI in June 1972 to cover up his agency's role in helping to smear the reputation of Daniel Ellsberg, the man who leaked a secret history of the Vietnam War to the press, a newly released CIA document shows.