A private visit to Yale from former secretary of state Henry Kissinger was leaked and publicized by publications on Monday including Salon and Gawker.

On Monday, Salon reported that graduate students in history received an email that morning from a private panlist inviting them to Kissinger’s lecture. The talk, scheduled for Friday at 3:00 p.m., is affiliated with the Johnson Center for the Study of American Diplomacy and is titled “Europe at a Crossroads: The Future of Europe and Its Role in the International System.”

Students were encouraged to maintain the privacy of the event, which was described as being “by invite only.”

“Dr. Kissinger’s visit to campus will not be publicized, so we appreciate your confidentiality with respect to this exciting opportunity,” said Larisa Satara, associate director of Yale’s Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, in the email.

The email also emphasized the exclusive nature of the lecture, which will have a guest list at the front door and require attendees to remain seated for the entire event, according to Salon.

The former statesman’s lecture at Yale last April, “American Diplomacy: Past, Present and Future,” was publicized to students in the Jackson Institute through a nearly identical email requesting that they respect the confidentiality and security of the event.

The event organizers defended their request for confidentiality because of the predicted popularity of the event. Kissinger is well-known for his controversial actions while serving as secretary of state under Nixon and Ford.

“[The email] simply refers to the fact that this is a Yale event and that seating is limited,” Satara said, in an email to Salon. “We simply do not have the space to attend and have limited the invites to current Yale students who have demonstrated an interest in the topic of the conference.”