Media Influences from and on the JFK Assassination
As read from many articles, the John F. Kennedy
assassination transformed media as we know it. Media was not heavily used but
starting with gunshots in Dallas and reaching 4 days later with the funeral,
media covered the entire story on the former President of the United States.
This was important for the people because he was the “people’s president” and
America wanted to follow the story of the killing. In one article, it mentioned
that even commercials were suspended during important times.
Some statistics that the articles had included following the
confirmation of Kennedy’s death on Friday that 45.4 percent of TV sets in
America were being used. By Kennedy’s funeral on Monday, 81 percent of TV sets
were in use, which is one of the highest ratings in history. A survey conducted
said that two-thirds of Americans fell into emotional distress while watching
the events on TV. This is understandable because Americans had not experienced
this kind of unrest in the country.
News industries said that newspapers and the radio was the
main sources of news, but after the assassination, the television took off.
Within 10 years after the assassination, the number of households that had
televisions increased by 80 percent. People finally were realizing that watching
the news on a TV was a lot more convenient than trying to tune into a radio
station or waiting for the print to come out. Overall, the television took off
after Kennedy’s assassination and even during the events that were happening, the
media effected the way the people heard about Kennedy.
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