American Experience

Who's Who: United States		return to index
	Daniel Ellsberg			25 of 41

In 1971, Ellsberg precipitated a national uproar when he released the Pentagon Papers, the U.S. military's account of activities in Vietnam, to The New York Times. A Vietnam veteran and a senior research associate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Center for International Studies, Ellsberg helped to compile the Pentagon Papers while working in the Defense Department. Initially, he supported the war effort, but later turned against it. His release of the Pentagon Papers succeeded in eroding public support for the war.