Forum Denied Access to Key JFK Assassination Footage Held by National Archives and Sixth Floor Museum

DALLAS, TX, UNITED STATES, June 26, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Forum Denied Access to Key JFK Assassination Footage Held by National Archives and Sixth Floor Museum**

Dallas, TX — The Forum on Open Access to Government Records today announces that its formal requests for access to key historical materials related to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy have been denied or ignored by both the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza.

Over the past year, the Forum has submitted multiple public records requests to NARA and the Museum, seeking access to the Zapruder film — the most important visual record of the Kennedy assassination — and related archival materials. These requests included:

* High-resolution digital scans of all frames of the Zapruder film
* Access to archival transparencies and film elements held by the National Archives
* Permission to view and reproduce historical frames that the Museum claims are copyrighted
* Publication of the full Zapruder film frames on NARA’s public website for research and educational use

Despite the film having been purchased by the U.S. government in 1999 for preservation and public access, the National Archives has failed to produce the materials or respond meaningfully to the Forum’s FOIA-based requests. The Sixth Floor Museum has also refused to make these frames publicly accessible and continues to assert restrictive copyright claims over historically significant images that should, by law and precedent, be available to the public.

“We are deeply concerned that both institutions have stonewalled reasonable requests for access to public records,” said Mark L. Javitch, attorney for the Forum. “This film is a government-owned historical document, and it should not be hidden from the American people.”

The Forum on Open Access to Government Records is an organization dedicated to the principle that government records — especially those of profound historical significance — must be accessible to the public, the press, and researchers. The Zapruder film, which captures the moment of the assassination in unprecedented detail, has been at the center of public debate for decades and is a cornerstone of American historical memory.

Yet, more than 25 years after the federal government acquired the film, key frames remain locked away, and requests for transparency continue to be met with silence, denial, or legal threats.

“This isn’t just about a film,” said Javitch. “It’s about whether the public has the right to see evidence that has shaped our understanding of one of the most consequential events in U.S. history.”

The Forum will continue to press for the release of these materials and calls on both NARA and the Sixth Floor Museum to comply with the spirit and letter of the law governing public records and historical transparency.

For updates and more information, visit the Forum's website or contact:

Mark L. Javitch
Javitch Law Office
3 East 3rd Ave. Ste. 200
San Mateo CA 94401
Phone: (650) 781-8000

MARK L JAVITCH
Javitch Law Office
+ +1 6507818000
email us here

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