--- title: Richard Nixon Assigns a Reporter to Watch Panda Sex description: A new book details the former president’s keen interest making sure his new panda’s got busy canonical: https://time.com/3048944/richard-nixon-panda/ author: Denver Nicks article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-07-28T21:24:59.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:11:59.796Z og:title: Richard Nixon Assigns a Reporter to Watch Panda Sex og:description: A new book details the former president’s keen interest making sure his new panda’s got busy og:url: https://time.com/3048944/richard-nixon-panda/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt853dd2c9e2835dea/69869d8b3bc999a3aa1a4b72/ap7401010777.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: WASHINGTON GIANT PANDA og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Richard Nixon Assigns a Reporter to Watch Panda Sex twitter:description: A new book details the former president’s keen interest making sure his new panda’s got busy twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt853dd2c9e2835dea/69869d8b3bc999a3aa1a4b72/ap7401010777.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Richard Nixon Asked a Reporter to Watch Panda Sex  by [Denver Nicks](https://time.com/author/denver-nicks/)  ## Denver Nicks Jul 28, 2014 9:24 PM UTC  One of two giant panda bears, Ling Ling and Hsing Hsing, presented as a gift to the U.S. as a symbol of friendship and goodwill by the people of China following President Nixon's "Trip for Peace" in 1972, is shown at the National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C., in 1974. One of two giant panda bears, Ling Ling and Hsing Hsing, presented as a gift to the U.S. as a symbol of friendship and goodwill by the people of China following President Nixon's "Trip for Peace" in 1972, is shown at the National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C., in 1974.AP  by [Denver Nicks](https://time.com/author/denver-nicks/)  ## Denver Nicks Jul 28, 2014 9:24 PM UTC When former Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai gave the United States two pandas in 1972, the result, as captured in a pun-perfect turn of phrase by first lady Pat Nixon, was “panda-monium,” [report](http://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2014/07/28/here-is-a-clip-of-richard-nixon-discussing-panda-sex/) the authors of the new book _The Nixon Tapes: 1971-1972_. And that panda-monium–something which we here at TIME, progenitors of our very own replacement [panda-cam](http://newsfeed.time.com/2013/10/01/the-government-shut-down-its-panda-cam-so-we-made-our-own/), know all about–has continued, once more proving that we are but one nation, under panda. But the very first panda lover of all of us–the prototypical panda pursuer, the panda panderer to rule them all–was none other than bowling enthusiast and nearly two-term President Richard M. Nixon. Nixon’s interest in his new Chinese pandas, Ling Ling and Hsing Hsing, was such that he was touchingly concerned with their sex lives. Here’s Nixon’s exchange with Washington _Star_ foreign editor Crosby Noyes, courtesy of The Washington [_Post_](http://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2014/07/28/here-is-a-clip-of-richard-nixon-discussing-panda-sex/). **Nixon**: The problem, however, with pandas is that they don’t know how to mate. The only way they learn how is to watch other pandas mate. You see? **Noyes**: \[laughs\] **Nixon**: And, so they’re keeping them there a little while—these are younger ones— **Noyes**: I see. **Nixon**: —to sort of learn, you know, how it’s done. **Noyes**: Sure, learn the ropes— **Nixon**: Now, if they don’t learn it, they’ll get over here and nothing will happen, so I just thought you should just have your best reporter out there to see whether these pandas— You get the picture. In exchange for the pandas, the U.S. gave China two musk oxen, which are neat enough, sure, but it’s pretty clear who got the better end of that deal. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3048944/richard-nixon-panda/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3048944/richard-nixon-panda/"},"headline":"Richard Nixon Asked a Reporter to Watch Panda Sex","datePublished":"2014-07-28T21:24:59.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:11:59.796Z","description":"A new book details the former president’s keen interest making sure his new pandas got busy","url":"https://time.com/3048944/richard-nixon-panda/","keywords":["Newsfeed","politics","Sex","China","diplomacy","Zoo","Panda","nixon"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt853dd2c9e2835dea/69869d8b3bc999a3aa1a4b72/ap7401010777.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Denver Nicks","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/denver-nicks/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt853dd2c9e2835dea/69869d8b3bc999a3aa1a4b72/ap7401010777.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"WASHINGTON GIANT PANDA","caption":"WASHINGTON GIANT PANDA","creditText":"AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3048944/richard-nixon-panda/","name":"Richard Nixon Asked a Reporter to Watch Panda Sex"}}]}] ```