Peoples Temple Collection; Box 10, Virtual item 22, Q242 - Part 3,  Peoples Rally (August 19, 1978) | Special Collections & University Archives

Recorded during an evening meeting of the Jonestown community in August 1978, this long tape includes Jones quizzing different (mainly unidentified) community members about the news of the day, recent movies, and important historical events, such as the execution of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg in the early 1950s and James Earl Ray's alleged confession of his assassination of civil rights leader Martin Luther King in 1968. There are also numerous preparations for the arrival of different visitors, including Temple attorney Mark Lane and author Don Freed, San Francisco newspaper publisher and Temple supporter Carlton Goodlett, and unnamed officials of the Guyanese government. Jones also reviews various legal and political actions taken against them, either in demonstrating the existence of a conspiracy against Peoples Temple, or in making points to bolster arguments for learning the news and strengthening the community. The tape opens with Jones instructing the people about being careful in answering questions posed by visitors; he says that he should answer the questions whenever possible, but gives people general guidance about the types of things to say about Jonestown. He'll help people make a point about the things they do within the community, but they should be aware of the impressions they make on guests. He adds that he catches things that they miss.

Full summary of the recording available at Alternative Considerations of Jonestown website, along with the tape transcript.