Republicans and Democrats began to drift apart sharply in the wake of the scandal - and the rift only “What would Watergate look like if it were to happen now?” The New York Times asks, before answering its own question: it looks like Donald Trump.For months, “the Trump administration and its scandals have carried whiffs of Watergate and drawn comparisons to the characters and crimes of the Nixon era”, says In fact “nearly every element in Trump's trouble has a Watergate parallel”, the news organisation adds.“This is a president who says things publicly that we know from the tapes that Nixon said privately,” Timothy Naftali, a New York University historian who directed the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, tells CBS. “It's as if Trump is wrestling with the history of Watergate openly. 2. Describe the role of the press in this story. He supplied the two journalists with vital leads and a simple but ultimately revelatory tip: “Follow the money.”Doing so, Bernstein discovered one of the burglars had received a cheque for $25,000 from Creep, taken from campaign contributions.The story was ignored by the most of the media and Nixon was easily re-elected in November 1972, but Woodward and Bernstein continued to pursue the connection between Watergate and the White House.Six months after the break-in, burglar McCord, along with Liddy, was found guilty of conspiracy, burglary and wiretapping.
Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.Early on June 17, 1972, police apprehended five burglars at the office of the DNC in the Watergate complex. The Watergate scandal (or just "Watergate") was an American political scandal and constitutional crisis of the 1970s, which eventually led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon. He supplied the two journalists with vital leads and a simple but ultimately revelatory tip: “Follow the money.”Doing so, Bernstein discovered one of the burglars had received a cheque for $25,000 from Creep, taken from campaign contributions.The story was ignored by the most of the media and Nixon was easily re-elected in November 1972, but Woodward and Bernstein continued to pursue the connection between Watergate and the White House.Six months after the break-in, burglar McCord, along with Liddy, was found guilty of conspiracy, burglary and wiretapping.
That was about to change.In May 1973, the United States was gripped as the Senate select committee on presidential activities began televised hearings into the case.Witness testimony unravelled the connection between the White House and Creep’s dirty dealings, including Watergate.But the most explosive revelation came from former White House official Alexander Butterfield, who revealed that all the conversations and phone calls in the Oval Office had been recorded since 1971.A subpoena was immediately sent out to access the recordings. Nixon’s role in Watergate has been under discussion and clouded in suspicion for years. Watergate, as it became known, eventually brought down president Richard Nixon, forcing him to resign, after it was revealed he had lied to the US public about his involvement in the burglary.The impact of the crisis was so powerful that scandals around the world are still dubbed “gates”.
Watergate scandal, interlocking political scandals of the administration of U.S. Pres. The significance of the Watergate Scandal was immense. But what actually happened, why was it so important - and can parallels really be drawn with the present day.Police were called out to Watergate in the early hours of 17 June 1972 and arrested five men - Virgilio Gonzalez, Bernard Barker, James McCord, Eugenio Martinez and Frank Sturgis – who were attempting to break into the complex, carrying photographic equipment and bugging devices.The subsequent FBI investigation uncovered address books belonging to two of the burglars linking them to former CIA agent E Howard Hunt, who had become a leading member of the Committee to Re-elect the President (officially the CRP, but commonly referred to as Creep), which was working to see Nixon back in the White House for a second term.Creep’s activities ranged from the unethical to the illegal, including wiretapping, money-laundering, harassment of activist groups and even, says Irish news site It would later be discovered that Hunt and a fellow committee member, G Gordon Liddy, were in the hotel opposite Watergate during the break-in, guiding the burglars via walkie-talkie.Despite the link to his campaign, Nixon categorically denied any White House involvement - but in private, the administration leaned on the CIA to put a stop to the FBI inquiry.Washington Post reporters Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward were instrumental in providing the evidence that directly linked the burglary to the Nixon administration.Crucial to their investigation was a source known only as “Deep Throat”, an anonymous FBI official finally identified in 2005 as the bureau’s deputy director, Mark Felt. All rights reserved.
Why Watergate matters ... All of this matters not only because it’s an important part of American history but because it is a cautionary tale about overreaching for power, abuse of … It was because of the scandal that Nixon was forced to resign on August 9th, 1974. It’s impact on American politics has been felt up until present day and it is safe to say that Nixon and his scandal will always be relevant. By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica.Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. A total of 5 burglars were arrested and further investigation revealed that the burglars and some advisors of the president were involved in conspiracy and illegal wiretapping.
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Why is coverage of the Watergate scandal a significant part of journalism history? The scandal was revealed when five burglars were caught by Washington police in the Democratic National Committee’s office on Jun 17 th, 1972, and ended with the resignation of President Nixon in 1974.
Watergate “was the worst scandal in American history for it was an attempt to subvert the American political process itself”, says PBS.