Nixon Administration Wiretapping Members of the Press FBI Files

FBI Investigation of Nixon Administration Ordering of Wiretapping Members of the Press FBI Files

180 pages of FBI files related to the Bureau's attempt learn about its own bugging and wiretapping, "special highly sensitive coverage," of members of the press and the National Security

Council. The bureau attempted to locate all its records of this surveillance. FBI assistant to the director Alex Rosen wrote to E.S. Miller, head of the FBI's Domestic Intelligence Division, that, "It goes without saying that knowledge of this coverage represents a potential source of tremendous embarrassment to the Bureau and political disaster for the Nixon administration Copies of the material itself could be used for political blackmail and the ruination of Nixon, Mitchell and others of the administration."

Those who it was determined were the subject of  "special highly sensitive coverage,“ included:

Henry Brandon, Correspondent, London Sunday Times

William Safire, National Security Council

Winston Lloyd, National Security Council

Marvin Kalb, Radio-TV Correspondent and news service

William Beecher, New York Times

Hedrick Smith, New York Times

Ambassador Richard F. Pedersen, State Department

Ambassador William Sullivan, State Department

Daniel Davidson, National Security Council

General Robert Pursley, military aide to Secretary Laird

James W. McLain, Health, Education and Welfare

Richard Moose, National Security Council