On a sunny autumn day in Dallas 50 years ago this week, John F Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, was fatally shot. Four government investigations concluded that JFK was killed by Lee Harvey Oswald, a former US Marine who defected to the Soviet Union.
Despite that, public opinion polls taken over the years have revealed that the majority of Americans believe that more than one person was involved. An Associated Press poll this year showed that more than 59 per cent of them still think Oswald didn’t act alone.
JFK's assassination has brought five decades of unsatisfied analysis and spawned numerous conspiracy theories. The debate continues: was it the KGB, the CIA, the Mafia or someone else?
This is not unique to JFK’s killing. There are conspiracy theories exploring other events, such as the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States or Princess Diana’s death in 1997. Some people may be uncomfortable discussing these theories, but many others find them intriguing, like puzzles.
It seems inevitable that some people see “conspiracy” in every striking event. Is it because we are sceptical by nature, imaginative or just bored?
