The Post

Presented by Tommy Chhe

 About The Post
> Producer and Director: > Cast:
> Steven Spielberg > Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Sarah Paulson,
> Writers: Bob Odenkirk, Tracy Letts, Bradley
> Liz Hannah & Josh Singer Whitford, Bruce Greenwood
> Recording Score: > Awards:
> John Williams > 113 nominations, 19 victories, nominated
> Cinematography: for Best Picture (Oscar)
> Janusz Kamiński > Genre:
> Production Company: > Historical
> Twentieth Century Fox > Release Date:
> 2017-18

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 Question One
Should the federal government
tell the entire truth about an
ongoing situation?

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The Beginning
It’s the middle of the Vietnam War. We see
a battle at the Hau Giang Province. A
military analyst named Daniel Ellsberg
witnessed the United States’ progress
being stagnated during the battle. Robert
McNamara, Secretary of Defense, asked
for Ellsberg’s input. Ellsberg does not have
optimistic views about the progress of the
Vietnam War. McNamara agrees with the
sentiment.

THE BATTLE

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 Question Two
Is it ethical to steal documents from the federal
government? The government had been lying about
progress in the war throughout four presidential
administrations, so someone gave the documents,
illegally, to some major newspapers. Was this
ethical? What would you do if you found out about
the government lying to us?
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 Disillusion

> Despite McNamara agreeing with Ellsberg that

it would be pointless to send more troops to
Vietnam, McNamara told the media and the
public that the situation in Vietnam is
optimistic, despite the contrary.
> This made Ellsberg disillusioned, mistrustful,
and distrustful of the government.

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McNamara Addressing “Progress” To The Public

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The Revelations

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 Revelation
> Ellsberg made copies of papers which reveal that dating back to
the Truman administration, the United States had been involved
in Indochina. Under Truman, the United States spent $10 million
in foreign involvement within Indochina. Eisenhower gave an order
to have control of general elections within Vietnam. Kennedy
ordered an examination of a possible commitment of United
States troops to Indochina.
> United States had been involved in Indochina despite previous
administrations hinting that no major involvement would occur in
Indochina.

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 Question Three
Is it ethical for a newspaper to
publish confidential information
from the federal government?
Even an act of treason?
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 Publication

> The New York Times published confidential

documents relating to the United States’
involvement in Indochina. 7,000 pages detailing
United States’ involvement in Indochina for more
than 30 years.
> As a result, Nixon wants to take the New York
Times to court.

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 The Search For More Documents

The Post
> The Washington Post found out that they are
given 4,000 pages out of the possible 7,000
pages. Not the full content. The documents are
not in order. The Washington Post decided to look
for all of the documents.

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 Question Four
What incentives does the Washington
Post have, knowing they would end up
in court by collaborating with the
New York Times?

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 The Meeting
> Post journalist Ben Bagdikian contacted Ellsberg
after which Ellsberg provided Bagdikian more than
1,000 papers.
> Bagdikian had a meeting with all staff members of the
Washington Post to publish the story the next day.
> Kay Graham had a meeting about whether to approve
of the publication with Ben Bradlee about if this is
ethical.
> Publisher Kay Graham approves the publication.
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Ellsberg Meets Bagdikian

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 The Endgame

> In New York Times Co. v. United States, the

Supreme Court ruled in favor of the New York
Times and the Washington Post with a vote of
6-3. The Supreme Court ruled that the First
Amendment protected the rights of the New York
Times and the Washington Post to print the
materials.

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 Question Five
Are the people who played a part
in unveiling the documents
heroes or traitors? Are they
whistleblowers or snitches?
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 Question Six
What precedent does this set
for the years since the
documents were unveiled and
going forward?
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 Bibliography
MacKenzie, John P. “Court Rules for Newspapers, 6-3.” The
Washington Post [Washington DC], 1 July 1971,
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/flash/july/pent71.ht
m.
Spielberg, Steven, director. The Post. 12 Jan. 2018.
The Post.” IMDb, IMDb.com, 12 January 2018,
www.imdb.com/title/tt6294822/.

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 Thank You!
REMEMBER:
> WASH YOUR HANDS
> STAY SAFE!
> WE’RE ON THE SAME TEAM!

REGARDS, TOMMY

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