The true story of the leaking of the Pentagon Papers, the event which inspired Steven Spielberg's feature film The Post

In 1971 former Cold War hard-liner Daniel Ellsberg made history by releasing the Pentagon Papers - a 7,000-page top-secret study of U.S. decision-making in Vietnam - to the New York Times and Washington Post. The document set in motion a chain of events that ended not only the Nixon presidency but the Vietnam War. In this remarkable memoir, Ellsberg describes in dramatic detail the two years he spent in Vietnam as a U.S. State Department observer, and how he came to risk his career and freedom to expose the deceptions and delusions that shaped three decades of American foreign policy. The story of one man's exploration of conscience, Secrets is also a portrait of America at a perilous crossroad.

"[Ellsberg's] well-told memoir sticks in the mind and will be a powerful testament for future students of a war that the United States should never have fought." -The Washington Post

"Ellsberg's deft critique of secrecy in government is an invaluable contribution to understanding one of our nation's darkest hours." -Theodore Roszak, San Francisco Chronicle

Autorentext

Daniel Ellsberg, a Harvard graduate, ex-Marine, and Rand Corporation analyst, was one of the "whiz kids" recruited to serve in the Pentagon during the Johnson administration. In 1971, Ellsberg made headlines around the world when he released the Pentagon Papers. He is now a prominent speaker, writer, and activist.

Inhalt

PrefacePart I

Prologue: Vietnam 1961

1. The Tonkin Gulf: August 1961 2. Cold Warrior, Secret Keeper 3. The Road to Escalation 4. Planning Provocation 5. "Off the Diving Board": July 1965 6. Joining the Foreign Legion 7. Vietnam: The Lansdale Team 8. Travels with Vann 9. Losing Hope 10. Rach Kien 11. Leaving Vietnam Part II 12. Jaundice 13. The Power of Truth 14. Campaign '68 15. To the Hotel Pierre 16. The Morality of Continuing the War 17. War Resisters 18. Extrication 19. Murder and the Lying Machine Part III 20. Copying the Papers 21. The Rand Letter 22. Capitol Hill 23. Leaving Rand 24. Kissinger 25. Congress 26. To the New York Times 27. May Day 1971 28. Approaching June 13 29. Going Underground Part IV 30. The War Goes On 31. The Road to Watergate 32. End of a Trial Acknowledgements Notes Works Cited Index