Belief in JFK Conspiracy Declining
Belief in JFK Conspiracy Declining: A clear majority of Americans still suspect there was a conspiracy behind President John F. Kennedy‘s assassination, but the percentage who believe accused shooter Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone is at its highest level since the mid-1960s, according to a new Associated Press-GfK poll.
JFK’s motorcade, moments before the assassination.
According to the AP-GfK survey, conducted in mid-April, 59% of Americans think multiple people were involved in a conspiracy to kill the president, while 24% think Oswald acted alone, and 16% are unsure. A 2003 Gallup poll found that 75% of Americans felt there was a conspiracy.
As the 50th anniversary of Kennedy‘s death approaches, the number of Americans who believe Oswald acted alone is at its highest since the period three years after the Nov. 22, 1963 assassination, when 36% said one man was responsible.
Lee Harvey Oswald’s Mug Shot.
Those who were adults in 1963 were almost as likely as younger Americans to say that Kennedy‘s killing was a conspiracy involving multiple people — 55%, compared to 61%.
The Associated Press-GfK Poll was conducted April 11-15, 2013 by GfK Roper Public Affairs and Corporate Communications. It involved landline and cellphone interviews with 1,004 adults nationwide. Results for the full sample have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.9 percentage points; it is larger for subgroups.
Jack Ruby fatally shooting Oswald during a prisoner transfer, feeding speculation of a conspiracy.
What if John Kennedy had lived and Jackie Kennedy had succumbed to the conspiracy plot? Read SAVING JACKIE K, a thrilling adventure to rescue the First Lady.
Tags: Assassination, Conspiracy, Jack Ruby, JFK, Kennedy, Lee Harvey Oswald
