During the presidency of Richard Nixon, many events changed politics, the presidency, and the media forever. The Watergate scandal was one of the most significant political events in history. Five men broke into an office building that stored thousands of confidential documents containing plans for the Democratic side of the upcoming election. It sparked one of the most explosive media blasts in American history and certainly changed investigative journalism and the presidency forever. Nixon is considered one of the worst presidents the United States has ever faced; however, most of his flaws were hidden and his actions were never questioned until the media investigated him (Feldstein 62). Nixon was associated with much more than the Watergate scandal, but most of his shameful actions were discovered after his presidency ended. The Watergate scandal, however, would lead to Nixon's downfall: he was the first president to resign from office and the first president to be caught betraying the American people (63). several parties, and the operation began long before the burglars were arrested. After the arrests, Nixon was no longer a suspect until the Federal Bureau of Investigation linked the "hush-money" (money given to keep a criminal silent about a certain action) received by the burglars to his campaign fund (64). The burglars were caught breaking into the Watergate complex to repair "bugs" they had planted during a previous break-in (Holland 43). Immediately after the break-in, Nixon began covering up Watergate and his involvement. He gave a speech declaring that he and his committee were not involved in the burglary (4...... middle of paper ...... of their government and its people. A investigative journalism crusade began and the public fed off it Nixon was the first president to resign and the last to blindly abuse his power The United States of America was doubted, torn apart by. a conspiracy and brought together, forever changing his people and his presidency. Works CitedHolland, Max. “Watergate Reconsidered.” January 8, 2014. . “Watergate Affair.” Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th edition (2013): 1. Literary Reference Center. “Inside the Final Chapter of Watergate.” Time 165.24 (2005): 28. Historical Reference Center... 2014.