What do the New JFK Assassination Files Reveal?

The unanswered questions surrounding the assassination of JFK on 22 November 1963 continue to challenge our understanding of what actually took place and why it still matters 63 years later. The newly released documents do shed more light on the activities of the CIA and the Mafia and go some way to explain why President Johnson, the Warren Commission and the CIA went to extraordinary lengths to cover up or ignore important details about the 22nd November. The career of Lee Harvey Oswald from 1959-1963 is of particular interest. Some of the conspiracy theories will remain because the thousands of pages fail to answer once and for all who shot JFK.

DELIVERY MODE

• Face-to-Face

SUGGESTED READING

• Reiner, Rob, Podcast on the Assassination of JFK, 12 episodes available on Spotify and on several platforms which host podcasts
• JFKfacts.org, an extensive website maintained by Jefferson Morley, respected JFK assassination historian and journalist
• There are several short commentaries on Youtube from March 2025 which look closely at the newly released documents from the National Archives

COURSE OUTLINE

• Key events before the assassination on 22 Nov 1963, including the failed attempt to assassinate JFK on 2 Nov 1963 in Chicago and the career of lee Harvey Oswald from 1959-1963
• Grievances of the Mafia and the CIA against both the President and his brother, Attorney General, Robert Kennedy
• Key figures likely involved in the assassination
• Obvious discrepancies in “evidence” and witness statements about many aspects of the event
• Motivations of CIA, FBI, Warren Commission, President Johnson for covering up key aspects of the momentous event
• The long term legacy of the events of 1963

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this course, students should be able to:

1. Gain an appreciation of the remaining unanswered questions about the assassination
2. Discuss the factors which would have influenced the American government and security forces to coverup many important details surrounding the assassination
3. Understand which sources might shed more light on further study of the people and events surrounding one of the most dramatic events of the 20th century