On June 13, 1971, The New York Times began publishing excerpts from the Pentagon Papers, a classified Department of Defense study about the United States' political and military involvement in Vietnam from 1945 to 1967. The study was leaked by Daniel Ellsberg, a former U.S. military analyst who had worked on the study.
The Pentagon Papers revealed that the U.S. government had systematically lied to the public and Congress about the Vietnam War, including the scope of U.S. involvement, the chances of success, and the severity of the situation. The papers showed that the government had secretly expanded the war effort while publicly claiming to be doing the opposite.
The Nixon administration attempted to stop the publication of the papers, arguing that it was a threat to national security. This led to a historic Supreme Court case, New York Times Co. v. United States, in which the court ruled 6-3 in favor of the newspapers' right to publish the material, citing the First Amendment's protection of freedom of the press.
The leak and subsequent publication of the Pentagon Papers had significant consequences. It fueled the growing anti-war movement, damaged the credibility of the U.S. government, and contributed to the erosion of public support for the Vietnam War. It also set a precedent for the role of the press in holding the government accountable and exposing official misconduct.
The actions of Daniel Ellsberg, who risked his career and personal freedom to leak the papers, have been both celebrated as an act of heroism and patriotism, and condemned as a breach of national security. The Pentagon Papers and their aftermath remain a significant event in U.S. history, highlighting the tension between government secrecy and the public's right to know, as well as the power of the press in a democratic society.
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