For this assignment, I deliberately searched for a vintage article during a time when journalism was in its heyday and not subject to so much popular ridicule in social media and elsewhere as it is so often today. The piece I chose is “For President Kennedy: An Epilogue” written by former American political journalist and historian Theodore H. White for LIFE magazine’s December 6, 1963 issue. The author’s personal interview of First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy – conducted at her behest exactly one week following President Kennedy’s assassination -- forms the basis for the journalistic essay and is part of a series of pieces by White known historically as the “Camelot Documents.” That White penned this essay with editorial suggestion and oversight from the grieving First Lady was reported around the time of the piece and is also widely available background information now. Together, White and Kennedy strove to inform readers about the impact of JFK’s death and his approach to the presidency overall, with Kennedy adding an element of persuasion since it is she who persistently drove home the first-ever “Camelot” references.1 White and Kennedy’s meeting Jackie’s initial interview after her husband’s death. At the time the essay was published, the audience was every LIFE subscriber and prospective reader in America and around the …show more content…
In actuality, White tempered Jackie’s account of the assassination aftermath likely to spare the general LIFE readership of some of the more unseemly details. For example, in other pieces White wrote including his memoirs, White stated that Jackie also referred to a “piece of his [JFK’s] skull coming off” in her lap along with the blood and red roses and how the piece was “flesh colored not white” and “this perfectly clean piece [was] detaching itself from his head…” as he was scrawled across her
Sarah Vowell’s Assassination Vacation is a humorous exposé on the sites of murdered presidents and how they are used commercially instead of historically. Vowell takes a series of trips to the murder related sites of presidents Lincoln, Garfield, and McKinley, pointing out the lack of historical context in each of these areas. The use of history and her personal experiences captivate the audience in an emotional level, creating a platform for her argument. She opens the reader to the true history of these events and adds to it in her own humorous way. Arguably, her modernized language and sarcastic style of writing is the strong point that expresses the dissatisfaction these sites bring to a true appreciator of history. By the use of her historical knowledge, the first hand accounts of her trips, and tone Vowell’s argument induces change in the information found in United States landmarks.
Then, the speaker of this letter is Jackie Robinson, the first black baseball player in America. However, without Robinson as the speaker this text wouldn’t be preserved as it is today, specifically if the speaker was a little known person of color or even a white person speaking on the behalf of the black community. The audience includes President Lyndon B. Johnson directly; then Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey and Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller of New York; and lastly the people of America, the black community, and those fighting for civil rights. This audience is important because if Robinson hadn’t written to the President, and indirectly to the others, then, similarly with the speaker, the text might not be as preserved or well-known nor carry the same influence it has. The subject, as mentioned before for the text’s purpose, is the Civil Rights Movement and the President’s involvement in it during the Vietnam War, which is affects the text as Robinson is a
There are similarities and differences in how the authors of “American History” and “ TV Coverage of JFK’s Death Forged Mediums’ Role” use Kennedy’s assassination in their writing.
“There will be great presidents but there will never be another Camelot” -Jackie Kennedy, the 35th First Lady to John F. Kennedy. Jackie Kennedy and many other people refer to John F. Kennedy's short term presidency to Camelot due to his rise and fall. Therefore, the Kennedy mystique, his domestic policy, and foreign policy are a modern example of Camelot.
What is a legacy? Is it strictly a visible, touchable object? A legacy is not just an object that people can see; it can be a dream or an idea. Although his life came to a tragic end, John F. Kennedy was one of the many presidents that served his term of presidency with compassion and dedication, and also, he left behind an unforgettable legacy to live on for the generations to come. His legacy was both an idea and dream that still affects many Americans today, as he led people to believe that he would make peace between countries. “Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty” (Kennedy). When he won the election for president in 1961, he would set goals for the United States that would amount to extraordinary events. Also, he would overcome one the most dangerous obstacles that any president has ever encountered.
The assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States marked a tragic historical moment in American history. The president was fatally shot by a sniper while traveling with his wife, Texas Governor John Connally, and Connally’s wife in a presidential motorcade at 12.30 pm on Friday, November 22, 1963. JFK was pronounced dead shortly after rushing to Parkland Hospital, where a tracheostomy and other efforts failed to keep him alive. Although Lee Harvey Oswald, a former United States Marine was convicted of the crime, the purpose behind the assassination remained inclusive as Oswald’s case never came to trial as he got shot to death two days later by Jack Ruby, a local nightclub operator in Texas. The assassination raised many questions and theories concerning the murder. As Oswald’s motives remain unknown, many scholars and investigators yearned to find the key to this mysterious crime, and came up with plausible theories searching for motives behind the assassination. While some straightforwardly blamed Oswald for the murder, claiming Oswald’s personal motives as the cause and supported the theory of the Lone Gunman, many developed more critical theories concerning conspiracies connecting the involvement of Cuba, Russia, the Central Intelligence Agency and the 36th President of the United States Lyndon B. Johnson. The Warren Commission was established by President Johnson to exclusively investigate the assassination. The Commission published a detailed report and concluded that Oswald acted alone. The deficiency of the Warren Commission’s evidence to support its theory along with the cordial relationship between JFK and the CIA refute both the Lone Gunman theory and conspiracies involving the CIA in...
The book Killing Kennedy: The End of Camelot was written by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard and is based upon the life and death of the 35th President of the United States of America, John Fitzgerald Kennedy. Although it is a biography of his life, it’s main subject is to describe his presidency leading up until his assassination. The book describes the hardships of his presidency both political and personal. It describes the enemies he forms while in office such as the leader of the USSR, Nikita Khrushchev, and Cuba, Fidel Castro, it also describes his difficult relationships with CIA Director Allen Dulles as well as with his own Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson. The book describes the major foreign and domestic issues he faces throughout
Handler, M.S. “Malcolm X Scores Kennedy on Racial Policy.” New York Times 17 May 1963:14.
Oliver Stone's JFK was a movie about the investigation by a district attorney, Jim Garrison, about the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. JFK was one of the most controversial films of its time dealing with the decades-long debate about who actually killed President Kennedy. Was it done by the lone gunman Lee Harvey Oswald and his magic bullet that pierced through the bodies of the two men creating seven wounds? Or was it the end result of a detailed scheme masterminded by the Mafia involving the U.S. government and military, the Cubans, and all other Kennedy-haters? Jim Garrison was determined to find out the truth of the assassination.
John F Kennedy was the 35th president of the United States Of America. He's considered one the best Presidents ever. He did many things in his presidency before was assassinated in November 1963. He proposed the Civil Rights Act, and he commanded the U.S like no one has ever seen before. John F Kennedy's death changed America forever. It caused conspiracies, sadness, and many other things. Even today his legacy of a U.S president is one of the best, even though he couldn't have it for so long. He impacted American Society in a huge way.
Fetzer, John H., ed. Murder in Dealey Plaza: What We Know Now That We Didn't Know Then about the Death of JFK. Open Court Publishing Company / October 2000
Bonila, Denise M., and Levy, Beth, Eds. The Power of the Press. H. W. Wilson, 1999.
Biography in Context, in the article “John Fitzgerald Kennedy” claims that JFK’s legacy is one of the largest and most memorable legacies in the history of Presidents of the United States. In their article, they use quotes from historians and other people who observed JFK and his family in order to emphasize the impact of JFK’s presidency and the Kennedy family. For example, they quote historian Doris Kearns Goodwin who claims that “no American family has had a more vivid and powerful impact on the life of their times” (Biography in Context 94). This evidence suggests that JFK had an extremely large impact on the United States.
Sabato, Larry J. Feeding Frenzy: Attack Journalism and American Politics. Baltimore: Lanahan Publishers, Inc., 1991.
Journalism: a profession under pressure? Journal of Media Business Studies, 6, 37-59. Scannell, P. (1995). The 'Secondary'. Social aspects of media history, Unit 9 of the MA in Mass. Communications (By Distance Learning).