The whistleblower whose actions in leaking the Pentagon Papers 50 years ago inspired the movie The Post and who faced life in prison for doing so, has claimed Donald Trump is in some ways more sinister and dangerous than Richard Nixon.

Daniel Ellbserg, who was charged under the Espionage Act for providing to the press a classified Pentagon study about the war in Vietnam that revealed the government had repeatedly lied, said Mr Trump - unlike Nixon - had openly demonised the media and sought to undermine it.

“What we have never had is the President openly demonising the press in the way Trump does and telling his base that the press is making up news against him,” said the 86-year-old former military analyst.

“Nixon thought of the press as the enemy, but he kept that private. We can get it from Trump’s tweets.”

Asked if he believed Mr Trump’s actions were in that sense more dangerous than those of Nixon, who sought to jail him for up to 115 years, he told The Independent: “Nixon did not make an effort to destabilise the press. This is something new and it’s sinister…The press is all we have.

“Yes, it’s more shocking and dangerous in a way. It’s hard to stop.”

He said he believed other branches of government were not seeking to counter Mr Trump’s assault on the media. “If he is successful, our democracy is very much under threat.”

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