Daniel Ellsberg was an American political activist, economist, and United States military analyst. While employed by the RAND Corporation, he precipitated a national political controversy in 1971 when he released the Pentagon Papers, a top-secret Pentagon study of U.S. government decision-making in relation to the Vietnam War, to The New York Times, The Washington Post, and other newspapers.
Ellsberg in 1972
Ellsberg, speaking at a press conference, New York City, 1972
Fielding's filing cabinet, with break-in marks, on display at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History
Artist David Rose's rendering of attorneys during the 1973 trial of Ellsberg and Russo in Los Angeles
The RAND Corporation is an American nonprofit global policy think tank, research institute, and public sector consulting firm. RAND Corporation engages in research and development (R&D) across multiple fields and industries. Since the 1950s, RAND research has helped inform United States policy decisions on a wide variety of issues, including the space race, the Vietnam War, the U.S.-Soviet nuclear arms confrontation, the creation of the Great Society social welfare programs, and national health care.
Headquarters in Santa Monica
RAND Corporation, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania