Re: CURIOUS LACK OF PRE-11/22/63 JFK TV COVERAGE

[David Von Pein]

This topic I'm going to bring up here isn't Earth-shaking or important
by any means, but it's something I've thought about on numerous
occasions since I began to collect a lot of JFK-related video and
audio programming a few years ago.

I have asked myself this question several times:

I wonder why I've never come across a lot of additional video and film
footage (and radio/audio stuff too) of President Kennedy arriving in
various cities throughout the world prior to November 22, 1963?

As most people know, the day of JFK's death was covered virtually
"wall-to-wall" on local television AND even radio in Fort Worth and
Dallas, Texas:

http://JFK-In-Fort-Worth.blogspot.com

http://JFK-Arrives-In-Dallas.blogspot.com

Both of Kennedy's Fort Worth speeches were covered by the local DFW
media, and his arrival at Love Field in Dallas on 11/22/63 received
fabulous coverage via the Dallas media's "pool" coverage (WFAA-TV
providing the camera and reporter [Bob Walker] for the TV coverage;
while KLIF provided the newsman [Joe Long] on the radio side).

And, quite obviously, at the time of that coverage of JFK's Fort Worth
speeches and his arrival at the Dallas airport, nobody on Earth
(except Lee Harvey Oswald, of course) could have possibly known (or
even dreamed) that that TV and radio footage would be depicting John
F. Kennedy's last hours alive. (Which is what makes that extraordinary
and detailed coverage of Mr. Kennedy's last hours so historic and
precious to collectors of such material, like myself.)

So, with the above preface in mind, I just wonder where all of the
buried and locked-away video and audio material might be located for
JFK's many, many other visits to many other cities in the USA and
abroad during his 34 months as President?

Maybe a bunch of other (non-Dallas) such footage does exist and I just
haven't seen it or come across it anywhere. But as an avid collector
of any "Kennedy" video material, I would think that I would have
encountered at least SOME pre-November 22 footage showing local TV
coverage of Kennedy arriving in a particular city for an appearance
(similar to the Dallas Love Field coverage).

But all I have seen along those lines have been short snippets of film
of JFK getting off a plane. But nothing that would equal the scope and
detail of the "as it's happening" type of coverage that took place in
both Fort Worth and Dallas on 11/22/63. I've never seen anything even
CLOSE to that type of wall-to-wall coverage for any other day of John
Kennedy's life except for November 22, 1963.

I have seen still photographs of JFK in several pre-November 22
motorcades. And, in fact, I have utilized those pictures on several
occasions to knock down the silly theory purported by some conspiracy
theorists about how JFK's Secret Service protection was being
"stripped" away on the day he was killed. But the pre-Nov. 22 photos
showing many motorcades with NO Secret Service agents even close to
the President's limousine totally destroy the notion that the Secret
Service protection for JFK was substantially different in Dallas when
compared to any other motorcade JFK rode in prior to November 22.

http://JFK-Archives.blogspot.com/2010/11/secret-service.html

The (near)-total lack of any such pre-November 22nd "motorcade" or
"airport arrival" television footage is all the more curious and
inexplicable (at least to me) when considering the fact that such
material would have undoubtedly been coveted and treasured greatly by
many people in the wake of what transpired on 11/22/63.

Every sound bite and video clip of John F. Kennedy that any TV or
radio station had in its vaults would likely rise to an elevated level
of historic importance after the assassination.

And yet I have not seen any TV material that comes even close to
rivalling the tremendous Texas media coverage from November 22nd,
1963.

And I just have to wonder....why?

I find it nearly impossible to believe that ONLY the Dallas and Fort
Worth television and radio stations were interested enough to plaster
the local airwaves with coverage of President Kennedy's visit to their
cities on 11/22/63, while no other city in the United States provided
any TV coverage at all of JFK's visits to their cities--whether it be
Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Boston, Miami, Fargo,
Albuquerque, Seattle, Des Moines, Sante Fe, St. Louis, or Salt Lake
City.

I wonder if one possible explanation for the lack of such TV footage
could be that some TV stations might have erased or recorded over the
videotape footage they had of JFK arriving in their cities. Perhaps it
was standard procedure to only keep such videotape recordings for a
limited amount of time before they re-used the tapes to record other
events (to save costs on videotape). Could be. But I have no idea if
that is true or not in all USA television and radio markets, circa
1961-1963.

~big shrug~

David Von Pein
November 12, 2011

http://JFK-Assassination-As-It-Happened.blogspot.com
http://Kennedy-Videos.blogspot.com

[David Von Pein]

http://groups.google.com/group/alt.assassination.jfk/browse_thread/thread/d4378456dad1e4b3/9b0512f0dfb4ee3f?#9b0512f0dfb4ee3f


>>> "Much of Tom Alyea's footage inside the TSBD was thrown away. But his point is a little off. Most other local stations did not pick up the story until the networks cut in and most just kept a constant feed from their network. It broke so early in Dallas because that is where it happened." <<<

Of course, Marsh totally misses the point I was making. I wasn't
talking about November 22 footage from other (non-Dallas) TV and radio
stations (although I also wonder why a whole lot more 11/22 coverage
from various U.S. cities hasn't surfaced over the years, because I'd
bet that a large amount of 11/22 stuff was saved by virtually every
U.S. TV and radio station in the country; but all I've seen or heard
is the Dallas stuff, plus some from Houston, Philadelphia, and
Cincinnati).

But, anyway, in this thread I wasn't talking about assassination
coverage, as Marsh seems to think (for some reason). I'm talking about
footage of Kennedy arriving in various cities BEFORE Nov. 22.

But, as usual, it looks like Marsh wants to take over the thread--and,
in this case, completely derail its meaning by assuming that I was
talking about assassination media coverage. ~sigh~






>>> "Videotape? That's an anachronism. They didn't use videotape and remote satellite feeds out in the field back then. They still used 16 mm film." <<<

Not always. KRLD's footage of Oswald's midnight press conference at
Dallas City Hall is on videotape, not 16mm film:

http://media2.myfoxdfw.com/html/JFKvideo/video/jfk007.html


And I'm pretty sure that the WFAA-TV footage from Love Field is on
videotape, not film. And the WFAA Love Field footage doesn't have that
"kinescope" (rounded corners) look to it.


>>> "Do you think Babushka Lady was using her brand new camcorder with the SD card?" <<<

What in the world are you talking about? My thread-starting topic has
NOTHING to do with amateur photographers filming JFK. I was talking,
quite obviously, about TELEVISION and RADIO stations....not ordinary
citizens with home movie cameras. Why does this even need to be
explained to you, Tony? ~sigh~


>>> "Do you know what outtakes are?" <<<

Gee, no, Tony. Explain it to me. Duh. (I'm just a stupid "WC
defender", after all.)

~sigh~



>>> "I am the guy who found the outtakes from The Last Two Days. So of course WC defenders ignore it because I am a conspiracy believer." <<<

I haven't ignored it. I even gave you a photo credit:

http://DVP-Potpourri.blogspot.com/2010/05/jfk-film-last-two-days.html

Did you "find" these outtakes too, Tony?:

http://DVP-Potpourri.blogspot.com/2010/09/jfk-interview-cbs-tv-september-2-1963.html

http://DVP-Potpourri.blogspot.com/2010/09/jfk-interview-nbc-tv-september-9-1963.html





>>> "Well, you are doing yourself a disservice. It is Earth-shaking and super-important. Maybe it is an example of a cover-up." <<<


Yeah, I kinda figured YOU would think it had something to do with the
proverbial "cover-up", Tony. Even though, of course, you're totally
clueless as to what this whole thread is about. I wasn't talking about
ASSASSINATION DAY coverage in my thread-starting post. For some
reason, you don't seem to realize that.




>>> "Yeah, what's wrong with all those people at home? Why didn't they turn on their VHS machines and DVD recorders immediately." <<<

Tony still thinks I'm talking about footage possessed by ORDINARY
CITIZENS. Unbelievable.


>>> "Since it was a local story, most other cities did not pick it up until the network coverage started. It might be interesting to contact reporters in other cities and see how they covered it in their cities. But that would be too much like research." <<<

Tony is off-topic yet again. He still thinks I'm talking about
11/22/63 TV and radio coverage. Unbelievable.





>>> "Have you seen everything in the Kennedy Library? Do you realize how much photographic material they still withhold? I was the guy who found the outtakes from The Last Two Days." <<<


Yes, Tony, I know. You've told us that explosive news bulletin already
in this thread.

And, speaking of the JFK Library....

The restructuring of the library's Internet site in January 2011
produced some very nice additions to the Library's online archives,
including audio versions of all 64 of JFK's Presidential press
conferences, and over 800 files in the "White House Audio Collection".
Nice:

http://www.JFK-Press-Conferences.blogspot.com

http://www.JFKLibrary.org/Search.aspx?nav=N:4294893490


[Note -- That last link above will not be the right link in about a
month from now, due to the very odd way that the JFK Library has of
archiving that "search" page for the "White House Audio Collection".
They'll change the "nav" number to a different number in a few weeks,
making the above link useless. They've changed it four times (at
least) since January 2011. I haven't the slightest idea why they keep
doing it. But you can always access the current version of the audio
collection by clicking the link marked "White House Audio Collection"
on any of the press conference pages, such as the sample page provided
below.]


http://www.JFKLibrary.org/Asset-Viewer/Archives/JFKWHA-004.aspx



>>> "Have you visited every TV station in every city and asked to see what they have?" <<<


Yes, Tony. I've scoured the entire USA and have gone to every radio
and TV station in every major U.S. city and asked them about their JFK
footage. But each time I asked a station, they said they could not
tell me anything about it, because they had orders from
"upstairs" (someone with the initials "JEH", whoever that is) that no
JFK footage was to be released or discussed due to the fact that their
station was engaging in a 48-year-old "cover-up" pertaining to all JFK
materials.

I didn't really think it was very strange at all until it happened for
the 850th time in a row (at a station in Topeka, Kansas). I then
started scratching my head a little bit.

I'm flying to Fairbanks, Alaska, tomorrow to see if I get rejected for
the 851st time in a row.


>>> "Then why weren't they covered by the JFK Records Act? You can pronounce cover-up?" <<<

Gee, what a surprise. Tony Marsh still thinks I was talking about
assassination-related television and radio material. Go figure.



>>> "I know of no technological way that, in 1963, Dallas stations could send live signals to Boston and other cities. We had to wait until the networks picked up the feed and distribute it to their affiliates. They didn't have satellite feeds then." <<<


Well, I'll be French-dipped! Tony still thinks I was referring to Nov.
22 coverage. Tony's confused (still).



>>> "And remember that the telephone lines were jammed. Al Gore hadn't invented the Internet yet." <<<

That's odd. Tony still thinks I was talking about Nov. 22.

And I thought it was W. Anthony Marsh of Somerville, Massachusetts,
who invented the Internet and the World Wide Web. (After all, it was
Tony who was responsible for that incredible discovery of those
amazing outtakes from Tom Atkins' film "The Last Two Days". He must,
therefore, have also pioneered the Internet too. Right?)

[bigdog]

On Nov 13, 2:32 am, David Von Pein <davevonp...@aol.com> wrote:
>
> And I thought it was W. Anthony Marsh of Somerville, Massachusetts,
> who invented the Internet and the World Wide Web. (After all, it was
> Tony who was responsible for that incredible discovery of those
> amazing outtakes from Tom Atkins' film "The Last Two Days". He must,
> therefore, have also pioneered the Internet too. Right?)

It is amusing everytime Tony takes credit for having found something
or proved something that no other researcher was ever able to uncover,
epescially when he tells us how he pointed those things out to someone
who is far better known than he is. He seems to have delusions of
grandeur, but of course, I can't say that on aaj or the moderators
would reject it, so I just chuckle to myself.