Link so I don't lose it for referencing

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2010-09-26-jfk-kennedy-mystique_N.htm

First Draft Essay Framework

Introduction:   Defintion of a hero and justification that JFK fills this . Pose question as to whether this is manufactured or naturally occuring based upon success.

Section 1    How myths are created linked in with the creation of Camelot.  

Role of other Kennedy family members- Bobby,  Current generation ( Caroline Kennedy )

Section 2    Other areas which use his image to represent something positive (taking him out of context of man and being associated with movements or ideas  -  Image of generation- good times in early 60s,  LBJ, African American rights.

Section 3   Situations which created further sympathy/ had an impact on the way he was percieved naturally
- Assassination  and Funeral
- negative post Kennedy situation in America

Section 4   Actions during presidency and whether they justify his reputation
- Cuban Missile Crisis vs Bay of Pigs
- Blame for Vietnam
- Inspirational speeches ?

Section 5 /(potentially my conclusion )   Is there an issue with manufacturing a myth if it is just an elaboration of the truth?Remembering people for their best.


I would also like to include discussion on the idea that he was "taken before his time" and the illusion of having greater potential. I'm unsure of which section this fits in best with, either his actions in presidency as to whether they do suggest he had further potential(4)  , linked in with his assassination (3) or linked in with a specific action of a group of people to suggest that he had potential to change the way he is percieved (1).  I'm even debating tying it with the the image of moving forward (2) . Overall it looks like it could go pretty much anywhere so I should stop worrying so much about where to place it!

What we remember

"History is a tissue of such tender episodes, if also an imperfect record of them"

                                   - Paul Maliszewski , Smithsonian magazine, September 2003

I just came across this sentence in an article on Smithsonian.com about iconic images of the 9/11 tragedy, reposted today as part of a remembrance series for the 10th Anniversary. Not only does it echo a lot of my own opinions on the nature of History and how we can manipulate how events are remembered to leave multiple conflicting versions of History, it also links nicely to my project.  History is by no measure always an accurate record of events, particularly when the people and events in question provoke such high levels of emotional involvement of the masses. In fact, I'm not even sure there is such a thing as an "accurate record" as very little of real life is quantitative and therefore to some degree every recollection of history is simply a subjective record, whether innocently in an observer only naturally noticing what they are inclined to notice or more intentionally in the case of propaganda schemes. Overall, just down to way history is recorded to some JFK's hero status will feel truly deserved whereas to others who interpret the same evidence differently it may feel more manufactured. At the end of the day, it's nicer to remember people for the best in their life rather than the worst, and so even though there may be many people out there who equally deserve to have a heroic status it doesn't take a way from the fact that Kennedy, a man whose word's and action have brought inspiration and happiness to many, deserves this status at least to some extent, regardless of the less endearing decisions he made at points in his life

More information sources for now and the future

http://kennedylegacy.tumblr.com/ 
This blog is a collection of old photos and quotes from the Kennedy family, which are quite nice to sift through and look at although not hugely useful for my project. However, the blog posts new Kennedy news as it appears, the majority of which is directly related to maintaining Kennedy's legacy, which is massively helpful! Top of the list of useful things I've found on their recently was news that the Jackie interview tapes from soon after the assassination are going to be released mid-September along with a TV special on them on ABC America.   These tapes have the potential to contain a lot of information of the Camelot myth and could reveal a lot apart the part played by Jackie Kennedy in maintaining her husband's legacy.  She is said to have stated herself that these interviews were done with a leading historian of the time to record information "for history" so hopefully the information they contain will reveal a lot about Jackie's view of her husbands life as well as her mindset for her subsequent actions in maintaining the Camelot myth.

The Kennedy's axed

The broadcast of The Kennedy's television series about the family was cancelled on ABC in America early in the year upon Caroline Kennedy's request. Although the official reason given by the network representative for the cancellation was that ABC  "concluded this dramatic interpretation is not a fit for the History brand."  There was a lot of speculation about whether Caroline Kennedy (daughter of JFK and Jackie) might have led the bid to have the series axed as she was unhappy with it's portrayal of her parents' relationship, despite its slightly dramatised but generally historically accurate nature.   The show aired in England on BBC2 and was picked up in Canada by a different network despite the concerns Caroline expressed, however the effort she supposedly went to to get a multimillion dollar project axed says a create deal the continued concerns of the Kennedy's to maintain their positive legacy.


Sources:  http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1346292/Its-truth-Producer-defends-JFK-mini-series-cancelled-pressure-Caroline-Kennedy.html
http://www.popeater.com/2011/01/11/the-kennedys-miniseries-cancelled/

Action Plan

"The Kennedys" - starting 7th April 2011

A new drama about the Kennedys starts tomorrow on the History channel :) For future reference (never know, I might need it!) the trailer is here . It aired in the states earlier this week and has had mixed reviews, apparently it's quite controversial and its likely truth has been bent for the sake of entertainment in places so I'm not sure how great it will be as a factual source. 

 "Linda Stassi, a critic for the New York Post, lauded the programme with praise, describing it as 'without a doubt one of the best, most riveting, historically accurate dramas about a time and place in American history that has ever been done for TV'."

Okay so I could be wrong. Either way, I'll still check the facts before believing everything it says.  

The History channel have done a video archive of news reports of notable events and a timeline to promote the drama here .   The videos seem quite useful but from first glance the timeline isn't wildly different to the one on the Kennedy 50 year site. Although saying that, they are probably coming from the total opposite angle, one praising and one looking for the drama in Kennedy's life, so that might be worth checking.  

Fingers crossed this drama is good and even if its not as informative as i'm hoping, it helps to confirm what sort of aspects would be interesting to look into to confirm my question a bit more.