Freda Reiter – John Mitchell listens to Nixon White House tapes – Pastel Drawing

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Central to the court case were Nixon’s secret White House audiotapes, admitted as evidence after the Supreme Court’s ruling on July 24, 1974. Headphones were distributed to everybody in the courtroom.

Pastel drawing, 17″ x 14″

Signature (detail)

Watergate exhibition page

Freda L. Reiter

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Since cameras were banned from courtrooms, news outlets depended on professional sketch artists like Freda Reiter for visuals. When Reiter was assigned the Watergate burglary trial, in 1973, she had no idea that she would be spending the better part of two years in Washington.

Watergate Courtroom Sketches by Freda L. Reiter, 1973–75
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To provide sufficient visuals for the substantial airtime allotted to the story each night, Reiter made multiple sketches a day: close-up portraits, as well as wide-angle views of the courtroom incorporating as many as 28 figures.