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Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-081
Sound recording of the President’s News Conference of March 21, 1962 (News Conference 28). The President begins the press conference with an announcement concerning the reply he received from Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev to his letter regarding on United States-Soviet cooperation in outer space exploration. Following this announcement the President answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including disarmament discussions in Geneva, the United Nations bond issue proposal, Guantanamo Bay, and demonstrations by United States military reservists.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-079
Sound recording of the President’s News Conference of March 14, 1962 (News Conference 27). The President begins the press conference by reading an excerpt of his letter to Secretary of State Dean Rusk regarding the United Nations disarmament conference in Geneva and United States policy objectives for the conference. Following this announcement the President answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including the possible cutting of funds for foreign aid, the current state of the economy, nuclear testing, and the Alliance for Progress.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-078
Sound recording of the President’s News Conference of March 7, 1962 (News Conference 26). The President begins the press conference by reading the text of a telegram he sent to the chief executive officers of the major steel companies and to the President of the Steelworkers Union concerning steel labor negations. He then discusses the tariff and trade agreements obtained at Geneva between the United States and the European Common Market, the United Kingdom, and other countries. Following the announcements the President answers questions on a variety of topics including the forthcoming Geneva negotiations for a nuclear test ban treaty, foreign aid to underdeveloped countries, and possible legislative action by Congress concerning funds for the B-70 supersonic bomber.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-144
Sound recording of the President’s News Conference of November 20, 1962 (News Conference 45). The President begins the press conference with an update on the Cuban Missile Crisis, stating that Soviet Prime Minister Nikita Khrushchev would withdraw IL-28 bomber planes in Cuba within 30 days and that the naval quarantine of Cuba was lifted as a result of the withdrawal. The President then announces the signing of Executive Order 11063, which prevented discrimination in housing facilities owned or operated by the federal government, and the creation of the Committee on Equal Opportunity in Housing. The President also announces advances in northeast India by the Chinese, and the deployment of a team headed by Assistant Secretary of State W. Averell Harriman to determine India’s military assistance needs. Following these statements the President answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including Cuba, information policies between the press and the government, Executive Order 11063, and the current situation between India and China.
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White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-143-007
Sound recording of President John F. Kennedy’s remarks at the White House Correspondents' and News Photographers' Associations dinner held at the Sheraton Park Hotel in Washington, D.C.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-130
Sound recording of President John F. Kennedy’s News Conference of September 26, 1962 (News Conference 44). The President begins the special press conference by greeting the delegates to the White House Conference of Business Editors and Publishers and summarizing the current state of the economy. He states that the United States is moving forward to meet a number of economic goals and emphasizes the importance of the free market system and maintaining a close relationship with business. Following these statements the President answers questions from the delegates on a variety of topics including the Administration’s relationship with the business world, the economy, union shops in the aerospace industry, the status of the Wilderness bill, and removal of agricultural inequities.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-126
Sound recording of the President’s News Conference of September 13, 1962 (News Conference 43). The President begins the press conference with a statement concerning the recent shipments of supplies and technicians into Cuba from the Soviet Union, events that led to the Cuban Missile Crisis. He goes on to say that the United States would not take military action against Cuba unless necessary. The President then answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including the Alliance for Progress, civil rights, the Chicago Northwestern Railway strike, the military space program, nuclear testing, and the President’s request for special reserve mobilization powers.
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White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-125-004
Sound recording of President John F. Kennedy’s remarks recorded in the White House Fish Room for a Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) television series on economics. In his speech President Kennedy discusses some of the administration's current economic challenges, and explains how a citizenry informed on economic issues can improve the country's wellbeing.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-124
Sound recording of the President’s News Conference of August 29, 1962 (News Conference 42). The President begins the press conference by announcing the retirement of Associate Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter for health reasons and the appointment of Secretary of Labor Arthur J. Goldberg to fill the vacancy. He also announces that the Soviet representative in Geneva has proposed a cut-off date of January 1, 1963 for all nuclear weapons testing. The President agrees with the proposed date and urges all affected governments to accelerate negotiations in order to meet the goal. The President then answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including nuclear test agreements, Berlin, the influx of supplies and technicians into Cuba from the Soviet Union, and a scientific investigation into the side effects of pesticides, particularly DDT (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane).
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White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-122
Sound recording of the President’s News Conference of August 22, 1962 (News Conference 41). The President begins the press conference with a statement concerning the historic rendezvous under the Arctic ice pack between two nuclear powered submarines, the USS Skate and the USS Sea Dragon. He then states the importance of five measures Congress was to act upon within the next seven days: the farm bill that extends the current feed grain program an additional year and repealed the 1958 Benson feed grain approach; the drug bill; a constitutional amendment to outlaw the poll tax in federal elections; the trade expansion bill; and the United Nations (UN) bond bill. Following these statements the President answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including domestic and foreign affairs, the space program, the economy, the delay in the approval of Thurgood Marshall to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, and an increase in supplies and technicians into Cuba from the Soviet Union.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-116
Sound recording of the President’s News Conference of August 1, 1962 (News Conference 40). The President begins the press conference with a statement against the sedative thalidomide and its harmful side effects. He praises the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Dr. Francis Kelsey for preventing the commercial distribution of thalidomide in the United States, and announced a 25 percent increase in FDA staff. The President also emphasizes the importance of legislative safeguards for pharmaceuticals and states his support for the bill introduced by Congressman Oren Harris. The President also announces a review of technical issues associated with a test ban treaty and urged the House of Representatives to support the United Nations bond proposal. Following these statements the President answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including civil rights in Albany, Georgia; nuclear testing; the economy; disarmament; foreign affairs; the Alianzo para el Progreso (Alliance for Progress); and the rumored resignation of Ambassador to France James M. Gavin.
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White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-041
Sound recording of the President’s News Conference of June 28, 1961 (News Conference 13). President Kennedy begins the press conference with a statement concerning the death of journalist Ed Koterba, followed by lengthy statements concerning the situation in Berlin and the Soviets’ refusal to negotiate on a nuclear test ban at Geneva. He then responds to Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev’s statement that the Soviet Union would out produce the United States by 1970. Following the announcements the President answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including the situation in Berlin, the rate of economic growth in the United States, and foreign policymaking for Latin America.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-039-002
Sound recording of President John F. Kennedy’s address to editors and publishers of the United Press International at the Statler Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C. In his speech the President discusses the importance of the press and the significance of national security. A question and answer session follows.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-035
Sound recording of President John F. Kennedy’s remarks at a Press Club luncheon (News Conference 12) held at the Palais de Chaillot in Paris, France. In his address the President thanks the French people for their hospitality during his visit and famously introduces himself, stating, “I am the man who accompanied Jacqueline Kennedy to Paris—and I have enjoyed it!” President Kennedy then acknowledges three major changes in the world since World War II: economic growth and reconstruction in Europe, increasing concerns about nuclear warfare, and new global threats to human liberty and economic stability. The President’s speech is followed by a press question and answer session on various topics, including the President’s scheduled meeting with Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev, mutual security between European nations and the United States, and the strengths of the United Nations and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Part of the question and answer session takes place in French. The recording cuts off abruptly during one speaker and contains some distortion.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-028
Sound recording of the President’s News Conference of May 5, 1961 (News Conference 11). President Kennedy begins the press conference with an update on the status of the nuclear test ban negotiations in Geneva. He then announces that Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson would be undertaking a fact finding mission to Asia; that the United States representative on the Council of the Organization of American states would be proposing a meeting of the Inter-American Economic and Social Council to discuss economic and social development in the Americas. Finally, he announces the sale of an aluminum extrusion plant in Adrian, Michigan. Following the announcements the President answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including problems facing the United States as a free society, the United States space program, and the successful launching of the first American astronaut, Alan B. Shepard, into space.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-027
Sound recording of the President's News Conference of April 21, 1961 (News Conference 10). President Kennedy begins the press conference by announcing that he will not be answering any questions about Cuba during the day's press conference. He then announces that the United States would be contributing food commodities to the United Nations to help alleviate world hunger, that the Veterans Administration would be paying a special insurance premium to holders of GI life insurance, and that the Peace Corps would be proceeding with its first project in Tanganyika. Following the announcements the President answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including the space program, the withholding of information from the press, domestic legislation, and nuclear testing negotiations with the Soviet Union.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-025-001
Sound recording of President John F. Kennedy's address to the American Newspaper Publishers Association at a Bureau of Advertising dinner held at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. In his speech President Kennedy addresses his discontent with the press' news coverage of the Bay of Pigs incident, suggesting that there is a need for "far greater public information" and "far greater official secrecy."
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-024-001
Sound recording of President John F. Kennedy's address to the American Society of Newspaper Editors held at the Statler Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C. In his speech President Kennedy discusses the purpose of American intervention abroad and the spread of communist ideology to Latin America and Southeast Asia, with particular emphasis on the Bay of Pigs incident that occurred in Cuba four days prior. The recording cuts off abruptly during the President's remarks.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-022
Sound recording of the President's News Conference of April 12, 1961 (News Conference 9). President Kennedy begins the press conference by encouraging the public to get vaccinated for polio. He then announces the formation of an advisory group to assist in changes to the foreign aid program and the sale of a United States Naval Ordnance Plant in West Virginia. Following the announcements the President answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including the possibility of an intervention in Cuba by the United States Armed Forces, the United States and Soviet space programs, and a comparison of democracy versus communism.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-020
Sound recording of the President’s News Conference of March 23, 1961 (News Conference 8). President Kennedy begins the press conference with a statement concerning the advances of Communist forces in Laos, emphasizing his administration’s support for the goal of a peaceful, neutral, and independent Laos. Following this statement the President answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including the situation in Laos, foreign aid, and segregation.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-019-003
Sound recording of an interview of President John F. Kennedy by NBC News correspondent Ray Scherer for a television special report entitled “JFK – Report #2” recorded in the Cabinet Room of the White House. In the interview President Kennedy introduces the members of his staff and explains their roles in the administration.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-018
Sound recording of the President’s News Conference of March 15, 1961 (News Conference 7). President Kennedy begins the press conference with several brief announcements concerning small business participation in defense contracts, the construction of the Libby Dam in Montana on the Columbia River, the Export-Import Bank’s authorization of a credit in favor of the Government of Israel for the purchase of agricultural machinery, and the President’s Conference on Heart Disease and Cancer. Following the announcements the President answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including nuclear disarmament, federal aid to education, and congressional support for the President’s New Frontier legislative program.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-017-002
Sound recording of President John F. Kennedy’s introduction of President Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana to press correspondents in the White House Fish Room. The recording also includes President Nkrumah’s response.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-016
Sound recording of the President’s News Conference of March 8, 1961 (News Conference 6). President Kennedy begins the press conference by urging the public to support Radio Free Europe. He then announces that he would be making a statement concerning his views of problems in the Americas following an upcoming reception at the White House; that he has directed Federal departments and agencies to speed up government spending; and the upcoming visit of Swedish Prime Minister Tage Erlander to the United States. He then makes several statements concerning the building of schools for Native American and Inuit children, the distribution of surplus food, and the polio outbreak in Cuba. Following the announcements the President answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including the President’s economic program, the situation in Laos, and federal aid to education.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-013
Sound recording of the President's News Conference of March 1, 1961 (News Conference 5). President Kennedy begins the press conference by announcing the upcoming visit of German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer to the United States, proposed legislation to restore former President Eisenhower's military rank of General of the Army, the reduction in the outflow of gold to foreign countries, the reduction of home mortgage rates, and the establishment of the Peace Corps on a temporary pilot basis. Following the announcements the President answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including the Republic of the Congo, nuclear disarmament, the economy, and United States-Soviet relations.