NBC NEWS SPECIAL REPORT: HENRY KISSINGER: AN INTERVIEW WITH DAVID FROST (TV)
Summary
In this news program, David Frost interviews former Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger on his tenure as assistant to President Richard M. Nixon for National Security Affairs from 1969 to 1973. The announcer reads the following statement, "... Henry Kissinger talks about war and peace and about his decisions at the height of his powers. For the first time on television, he will be asked to account, in detail, for the four years of his White House experience." Frost narrates a brief overview of Kissinger's career with footage of Kissinger's "...peace is at hand" statement on October 26, 1972, and the signing of the Paris peace accords on January 27, 1973, which ended U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. The announcer reads a prepared statement by NBC News regarding controversy over the portion of the program dealing with Cambodia. Highlights include the following: an account of the U.S.'s secret bombing campaign against North Vietnamese sanctuaries in Cambodia in March 1969; footage of Cambodia's Prince Norodom Sihanouk speaking out against U.S. bombing; the pro-American Lon Nol overthrows Sihanouk; and the U.S. rationale for secret bombing. In addition, Kissinger claims that Lon Nol acted without U.S. aid and foreknowledge; Frost and Kissinger discuss Nixon's incursion into Cambodia on April 30, 1970, with Frost asserting that the incursion widened the war; Frost discusses the "siege mentality" of the Nixon White House regarding wiretaps; Kissinger discusses his "very curious" relationship with Nixon; Frost and Kissinger discuss the relationship of morality to foreign policy, and talk about the U.S.-sponsored overthrow of Chile's elected president, Salvador Allende. Kissinger discusses his own personality and describes world leaders whom he has known. Includes commercials.
Cataloging of this program has been made possible by the Bell Atlantic Foundation, 1999.
Details
- NETWORK: NBC
- DATE: October 11, 1979 10:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:58:54
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T81:0529
- GENRE: Public affairs/Documentaries
- SUBJECT HEADING: Assassination; Cambodia - History - Civil War, 1970-1975; Cambodia - History - Secret bombing, 1969-1970; Cambodia - Officials - Talk/Interviews; Chile; Paris peace talks (Vietnam War); U S - Foreign relations - Chile; U S - Officials - Talk/Interviews; Vietnam War - 1969; Vietnam War - 1970; Vietnam War - 1972
- SERIES RUN: NBC - TV, 1979
- COMMERCIALS:
- TV - Commercials - 3M
CREDITS
- Thomas Tomizawa … Producer
- Jewel Curvin … Associate Producer
- Gerald Polikoff … Director
- David Frost … Interviewer
- Henry A. Kissinger … Guest
- Salvador Allende
- Richard M. Nixon
- Lon Nol
- Norodom Sihanouk