In 1971 Daniel Ellsberg, a high-level Pentagon official and a war strategist, concludes that the Vietnam war is based on decades of lies and leaks 7,000 pages of top secret documents to The New York Times, making headlines around the world. Hailed as a hero, vilified as a traitor, and ostracized by even his closest colleagues, Ellsberg risks life in prison to stop a war he helped plan.

This story of one man’s profound change of heart is also a piercing look at the world of government secrecy as revealed by the ultimate insider. Marked by a landmark battle between America’s greatest newspapers and its president — that goes to the Supreme Court — this political thriller unravels a saga that leads directly to Watergate, Nixon’s resignation and the end of the Vietnam War.