A series of professors and historians look at the presidential tape recordings of John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, and Lyndon B. Johnson, focusing on what these tapes reveal about the presidents' decisions and roles during the Vietnam War. The panel also discusses the significance of such recordings in general—to memory, to the press, to historians—and what they reveal about the character of individual presidents.

Audio and video options are available.

Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter David Halberstam delivers the keynote address to the national conference "'Vietnam and the Presidency," describing his experiences as a reporter during and on the Vietnam War and speaking on the war and its effects from this perspective.

Audio and video options are available.

Christian Appy, associate professor of history at MIT, discusses perceptions and memories of the Vietnam War from all possible sides: American civilians, antiwar protestors, and soldiers, as well as Vietnamese civilians and soldiers.

Congressman John Lewis, who at 23 spoke at the 1963 March on Washington as chairman of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, leads a discussion on the planning, implementation, and effect the first March on Washington had on the country. The presentation includes footage of Lewis's 1963 speech at the March.

A panel discusses the uncovering and content of the Presidential Tapes and what these recordings say about these presidents, their choices, and their personalities. The presentation includes excerpts from the Presidential Tapes.

Henry Louis Gates Jr., director of the Du Bois Institute at Harvard, discusses the African and African-American experience from W.E.B. Du Bois to John Coltrane in a comprehensive study, with an emphasis on Du Bois's concept of the "Encyclopedia Africana"—an encyclopedia of all Black culture and history—as a weapon against racism.

Art historian Abaigeal Duda looks at the work of African-American artist Lucy Cleveland (1780-1866), whose textile sculptures provide a record of the abolition movement prior to and during the Civil War.

PhD candidate Margot Minardi discusses Boston abolitionist activity, particularly its use of Revolutionary War resonances in its propaganda and oratory. The presentation includes slides.

Audio and video options are available.

Professor David W. Blight examines the character and legacy of fervent abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison (1805-1879). Blight looks at his private character and his public image, and how his ideals and technique might be received, used, and remembered today.

Audio and video options are available.

A slideshow gives examples of presidential photography by three White House photographers: Cecil Stoughton, photographer for Kennedy and Johnson; David Hume Kennerly, for Ford; and Diana Walker, for Reagan and Bush, Sr. The presentation also includes photo coverage and commentary on other presidents, including Clinton and a discussion with the photographers which follows the slideshow.