The Zapruder Film: Capture, Secrecy, and Legal Battles

It’s been almost two weeks since we woke up to the news of Charlie Kirk’s assassination. If you were online that morning, you probably saw rolling updates, speculation, conspiracy theories, and graphic footage — all before breakfast.

But it hasn’t always been like this. When Abraham Zapruder filmed the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963, the public didn’t see those 26 seconds of film for many years. That delay fuelled decades of fascination and conspiracy.

Today, Matt Bevan and Supervising Producer Kara Jensen-McKinnon discuss the Zapruder Film and how the way we experience big news events has changed.