Where can I find the verified, complete transcript and audio of the 2005 Access Hollywood tape?
Executive summary
The verified audio and partial transcripts of the 2005 Access Hollywood recording were first published by The Washington Post in October 2016 and circulated widely; archives and news outlets still host versions of the Post’s edited clip and transcripts [1] [2]. Several major news organizations — BBC, AP, PBS and others — published full or “complete” transcripts and audio excerpts when the tape was released and in subsequent court coverage, and court filings later referenced the recording and allowed its transcript into evidence even when judges limited playing the video itself [3] [4] [5] [6].
1. Where the original published audio and transcript live now
The Washington Post first published an edited video and accompanying transcript of the tape on Oct. 7, 2016; that Washington Post cut has been preserved in public archives such as the Internet Archive, which hosts a downloadable copy labeled “Washington Post cut” of the 2005 tape [1] [2]. Major outlets that reprinted or posted full transcripts at the time — including the BBC — still have their published text versions accessible online and are reliable starting points for the published transcript used by journalists [3].
2. What “complete” means in practice: edited vs. unedited versions
Reporting distinguishes between the Washington Post’s published clip (an edited excerpt) and fuller, unedited audio that researchers and performers later transcribed or dramatized. Academic and performance projects (for example, NYU’s Verbatim Performance Lab) have produced “entire unedited” versions based on the recordings, and independent sites have posted verbatim transcripts, but many public copies are the Post’s edited release or subsequent media edits rather than an official, annotated “master” file held by NBC [7] [8].
3. NBC’s archival role and why a single “official” public file is ambiguous
Contemporaneous reporting and later investigations show the recording originated in NBC/Access Hollywood archives; that corporate provenance means an internal master may exist but was not publicly released by NBC at the time — the Post obtained and published material from NBC archives instead [1] [9]. NBC’s possession and editorial choices have led to disputes about whether the version in wide circulation is the unexpurgated master; critics have noted timing and editorial decisions about what was released when [1] [9].
4. Court use: transcript admitted, tape sometimes barred
Several judges have allowed the transcript of the Access Hollywood tape to be introduced in court even when they declined to play the actual video for jurors because of prejudice concerns. For example, a New York judge permitted prosecutors to introduce the tape’s contents as evidence through transcript and testimony while barring playback in one criminal trial [6]. Federal courts in civil matters have likewise treated the recording and transcript as probative evidence [10] [4].
5. How to obtain the “most verified” public copy
For a verifiable, citable public copy: start with the Washington Post’s published clip and transcript as preserved in the Internet Archive (Post cut) [2]. Cross-check with major outlets that posted full transcripts (BBC) and with court filings or judge’s opinions that quote the recording — those filings are authoritative on wording used in evidence and are cited in reporting [3] [6].
6. Caveats, competing claims and unanswered items
Questions persist about whether any single released file is the original NBC master; reporting documents NBC archives’ role and later leaks but does not publish an authoritative “master tape” publicly [1] [9]. Some independent webpages and performance projects claim verbatim or unedited transcripts; those can differ from the Washington Post release and should be treated as secondary unless corroborated by archived source files [7] [8]. Available sources do not mention an official NBC public release of an annotated, full master-file online.
7. Quick practical steps for researchers
- Download the Washington Post cut from the Internet Archive for the widely cited, preserved audio [2].
- Use BBC/AP/PBS reporting for published full-text transcripts to cross-check wording journalists relied on [3] [4] [5].
- If you need what courts relied on, consult court opinions and filings cited by outlets (judges have allowed transcripts into evidence even when blocking playback) [6] [10].
Limitations: this summary relies on the media and archive items shown in reporting and public archives; available sources do not provide a public NBC “original master” download or an official NBC-hosted complete transcript file to link to directly [1] [2].