Kennedy Assassination Studied In New National Geographic TV Special

November 6, 2009 1:56 p.m. EST

Washington, D.C. (CNS) - A topic that has been the subject of much scrutiny and speculation will get a closer look with the airing of a new television special.

National Geographic Channel will honor the 46th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's assassination with the special "The Lost JFK Tapes: The Assassination." The long controversial killing of the president, which occurred on November 22, 1963 in Dallas, Texas, will be examined through the compilation of film footage, audio recordings and more, the majority of which have rarely been made available to the public.

The special recreates the events of the day in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. One of the focuses of the program is on the low amount of security surrounding the President and First Lady as they rode in a convertible in a parade. Spectators present that day are among those interviewed, as is the priest who performed the last rites on Kennedy and broadcasters who reported on the shooting.

The capture of assassin Lee Harvey Oswald - whose involvement in the shooting has long been a subject of contention by conspiracy theorists - is also shown, as investigators seized him from the sixth floor of Dealey Plaza's Texas School Book Depository after the shots were fired. The special also presents Oswald's own highly publicized death at the hands of Jack Ruby, who was able to get near Oswald and shoot him without any problems from security.

The section of the Book Depository has since become a shrine dedicated to the life and death of Kennedy. Gary Mack, curator of The Sixth Floor Museum, has viewed the special. "While some of this footage has been seen before, I have never seen it put together in such a riveting, compelling manner," Mack said. "Watching this film, you feel like you are actually transported back to that fateful day, in real time, and witnessing history live."

"The Lost JFK Tapes: The Assassination" airs November 23 on the National Geographic Channel.