National Archives Declassifies 13,173 Documents on Kennedy Assassination
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The National Archives on Thursday released 13,173 unredacted documents relating to President John F. Kennedy's 1963 assassination.
The Details: The documents released Thursday included information about Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey Oswald's extensive CIA "personality file," which the agency said was created three years before the assassination. Newly-released files also shine light on undercover CIA surveillance of Oswald when he visited Mexico City in September 1963, several weeks before the assassination. Those files suggest that Oswald made contact with Soviet and Cuban spies on the trip, including an assassination specialist, and that CIA operatives in Mexico City possibly mismanaged evidence that could have saved Kennedy’s life if it was relayed to the Secret Service more quickly.
For Context: The release followed an executive order from President Joe Biden authorizing their publication. Thousands more documents remain classified; the National Archives says more than 97% of the collection's records are now publicly accessible. Last year, Biden postponed the release, citing the COVID-19 pandemic, and gave the National Archives one year to review documents before they were released. That deadline expired Thursday.
How the Media Covered It: The release was a top story across the political spectrum Thursday evening. Sources on both left and right highlighted how many documents remain classified. Many reports also cited officials who said the files were unlikely to include anything suggesting that Oswald wasn't the killer or that Kennedy's killing was part of a government conspiracy.