MacNeil and Lehrer Reflect on the JFK Assassination

Thursday, November 21, 2013 

(November 11, 2013) Before they were paired behind an anchor desk, before they had even met, Robert MacNeil and Jim Lehrer were both assigned to cover President Kennedy’s visit to Dallas in November of 1963.  Robert MacNeil, then a White House correspondent for NBC News, was on the press bus following the presidential limousine when the shots rang out.  Jim Lehrer, a reporter for the Dallas Times Herald, was covering the President’s arrival at Love Field and events at the Dallas Police Department after the arrest of Lee Harvey Oswald. 

Judy Woodruff talked to them recently about the events of that day and its aftermath.   Excerpts of the extended interview will air on the PBS NewsHour – Thursday, November 21, 2013.  Their entire conversation will be posted on the NewsHour website at www.pbs.org/newshour.              

 

Friday, November 22, 2013

On the actual anniversary, there will be complete coverage of the commemoration ceremonies in Dallas, Washington DC and around the country.  In addition, Gwen Ifill will talk with a panel of presidential historians about the Kennedy legacy and the lasting impact the assassination has had on the country.

• Ellen Fitzpatrick, the Carpenter Professor of History at the University of New Hampshire and author of the book “Letters to Jackie” (now a documentary film.)
• Bill Minutaglio, journalism professor at the University of Texas at Austin and co-author of the book “Dallas 1963.”
• Robert Dallek, presidential historian and author of two books about President Kennedy: “Camelot’s Court: Inside the Kennedy White House” and “An Unfinished Life.”
• William P. Jones, professor of history at the University of Wisconsin – Madison and author of the book “The March on Washington: Jobs, Freedom and the Forgotten History of Civil Rights.”