Ellsberg’s Archive at the University of Massachusetts – Amherst

Daniel Ellsberg’s papers have been acquired by the University of Massachusetts – Amherst and will be managed by its Special Collections and University Archives at the W.E.B. Du Bois Library.

A week of activities in October 2019 marked the official launch of the archive and provided opportunities to engage the UMass community on subjects of special interest. Here are links to media coverage and videos:

—A video of Ellsberg’s Boston conversation with journalist Charles Sennott about whistleblowing, co-sponsored by UMass – Amherst and WGBH.  (10/23/19)

—An article in the Boston Globe about the archive acquisition.  (9/24/19)

—A video of Ellsberg discussing the collection.  (9/24/19)

—A video of his talk at the Friends of the Libraries’ 21st Annual Fall Reception:  “The Ethics and Risks of Threatening Omnicide.” (10/31/19)

—Two articles, here and here, about archive launch week events.  (9/25/19 and 9/20/19)

—An interview with past@present, the UMass History Department’s blog.  (10/28/19)

Ellsberg has also joined the University of Massachusetts – Amherst community as a Distinguished Researcher at the W.E.B. Du Bois Library and as a Distinguished Research Fellow at the university’s Political Economy Research Institute (PERI). Here are videos from two presentations at PERI in October 2019:

—A panel discussion with Ellsberg, Gar Alperovitz and Janaki Tschanner following a showing of “The Most Dangerous Man in America,” a documentary film about Ellsberg.  (10/28/19)

—A lecture applying economic insights to the psychology of war planning: “The Dollar Auction, Unendable Wars, and Gambling with Catastrophe.”  (10/29/19)

Ellsberg comments, “I am grateful that my papers will be going to the University of Massachusetts Amherst, an institution that is dedicated to the values of openness, equity and social justice. This collection, which represents my life’s work, will now be available to scholars seeking understanding of some of the most consequential events of the past half century.”