 Diễm had contacts in both the embassy and with the high-profile American journalists then in South Vietnam, David Halberstam ("New York Times"), Neil Sheehan (United Press International), and Malcolm Browne (Associated Press).The coup d'état was designed by a military revolutionary council including ARVN generals led by General Dương Văn Minh.Lieutenant Colonel Lucien Conein, a CIA officer, had become a liaison between the US Embassy and the generals, who were led by Trần Văn Đôn.