Front pages and smoke-filled rooms
In 1971, a battle took place in smoke-filled rooms — government war rooms and newsrooms alike. On one side were administrators concerned about information in the Pentagon Papers, a study that held the promise of embarrassment based on administration actions during the Vietnam War. On the other were top newspapers The New York Times and The Washington Post, both of which published stories with information leaked from the top-secret document.
People can relive that controversy and discuss the ever-relevant issue of the people’s right to know vs. protection of government info at Chancellor Brady Deaton’s forum on the “Battle of the Pentagon Papers.” University experts will provide unique perspectives: Charles Davis, executive director of the National Freedom of Information Coalition, regularly deals with issues of open government; Christina Wells, Enoch H. Crowder Professor of Law, is a First Amendment expert; Stuart Loory, Lee Hills Chair in Free-Press Studies, was once included on Richard Nixon’s “enemy list.” The forum takes place at 3:30 p.m. Wed., Jan. 30, in Ellis Auditorium.
Three days later, the University Concert Series will host a “docudrama” about the same topic, Top Secret: The Battle for the Pentagon Papers, at 7 p.m. Sat., Feb. 2, in Jesse Auditorium.
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