• Presidential Oral History Home


• Program Description


• Presidential Projects
        Jimmy Carter
        Ronald Reagan
        George H. W. Bush
        William J. Clinton


• Special Projects
        Edward M. Kennedy
        Lloyd N. Cutler
        Falklands Roundtable
        Congressional Affairs Symposium


• News and Events
• Scholars and Staff
• Policies and Procedures
• Editorial Style Guide
• Oral History Citation Guide

Presidential Oral History News and Events

Reagan Oral Histories Examine Howard Baker's February 27, 1987 Entry into the White House

In November 1986, a story appeared in the Lebanese newspaper Al-Shirra claiming that the U.S. was selling arms to Iran. Within weeks, President Reagan and Attorney General Edwin Meese publicly admitted that arms had indeed been sold to Iran and the proceeds illegally diverted to support anti-communist rebels in Nicaragua. The scandal provoked a series of congressional and independent counsel investigations into the Administration's actions, and nearly led to the collapse of the Reagan presidency. White House Chief of Staff Donald Regan was pilloried by both supporters and opponents of the Administration for failing to prevent the operation and protect the President. On February 27, 1987, Regan was replaced by former Senator Howard Baker. More information

On 30th Anniversary of Carter Inaugural, a Look Back at Carter's Early Governing Style

Thirty years ago, Jimmy Carter took the presidential oath of office, ending eight years of Republican administrations and pledging a new era of honesty and transparency in the first truly post-Watergate presidency. Although Carter was able to build an impressive record of legislative achievements over the next four years, his administration got off to a slow start as an ambitious list of priorities gave off the perception of a White House in disarray. More information

Oral History in the Classroom

On December 12, Jeff Chidester delivered a lecture before the Albemarle County Teaching Fellows Program on how to incorporate oral history into the K–12 curriculum. More information

Miller Center Holds Three-Part Forum on Reagan Project

In February 2006, the Miller Center hosted a day-long event to commemorate the release of the Ronald Reagan Oral History Project. The panels included seven former members of the Reagan administration and two scholars on the Reagan presidency. View or listen to the sessions:

• Session 1: Understanding Ronald Reagan (Stephen Knott, James Kuhn, Peter Hannaford)
• Session 2: Reagan and Foreign Policy (Kiron Skinner, Kenneth Adelman, Peter Wallison)
• Session 3: Reagan and Domestic Policy (Fred Fielding, James Miller, Ed Meese)

Presidential Oral History Program Releases Ronald Reagan Oral History

In January 2006, the Oral History Program released the first thirty-six transcripts of the Ronald Reagan Oral History Project, a five-year comprehensive spoken history of the Reagan presidency. This collection includes interviews with Cabinet officials, White House staff members, campaign advisors, and personal aides, including Richard Allen, Frank Carlucci, Jeane Kirkpatrick, James Miller, George Shultz, William Webster, and Caspar Weinberger.
Read the transcripts.

Stephen Knott on NPR's Talk of the Nation

In January 2006, Oral History scholar Stephen Knott appeared on NPR's Talk of the Nation to discuss the upcoming release of the Ronald Reagan Oral History Project. Also appearing on the program to discuss the Project were Presidential Historian Robert Dallek and University of Arizona Professor of History, Michael Schaller.
Listen to the program.

Oral History scholar, Russell Riley, published an op-ed in the November 6, 2005 Washington Post on the problems future scholars will have tracking the history of the modern White House.

At this year's conference of the American Political Science Association (APSA), Oral History Program Director James Sterling Young chaired a roundtable discussion on the work conducted by the Oral History Program. The panel marked APSA's first consideration of the importance of oral history interviewing to our understanding of the American presidency. Participants on the panel included Young, presidential scholars Charles O. Jones, Karen M. Hult, and Nancy V. Baker, and former administration officials Peter Wallison, Fred McClure, and Harold Ickes.

On December 6, 2004, the Edward M. Kennedy Oral History Project was officially launched in a ceremony at the Russell Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C. Historian Michael Beschloss, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, Program Director James Sterling Young, and Senator Edward M. Kennedy each delivered remarks to the audience gathered to commemorate the opening of the project.