The Dark Side of Camelot is a 1997 book by investigative journalistSeymour M. Hersh, published byLittle, Brown and Company. It presents a critical portrait ofJohn F. Kennedy, alleging misconduct in his personal life, corrupt political practices, and secret operations duringhis presidency.
Hersh's book makes a number of explosive allegations about Kennedy, including that he had extramarital affairs arranged by theUnited States Secret Service, engaged in vote fraud to win the 1960 presidential election, usedJudith Exner as a courier to deliver money to mob bossSam Giancana, and approved covert plots to assassinateFidel Castro.[1]
Secret Service agents interviewed by Hersh described JFK’s private behavior. One agent said there was “always a skirt.” Another remembered being told to retrieve compromising photographs from a Seattle photographer: “There was a picture of Kennedy standing with a drink in one hand and his arm around a naked woman.”[1]
Prior to publication, Hersh removed a chapter based on documents provided by forgerLex Cusack, which purported to show a hush money agreement between Kennedy andMarilyn Monroe. Forensic journalists atABC andThe Washington Post found clear anachronisms in the documents, including ZIP codes and typefaces that did not exist in the early 1960s.[2]The Washington Post described the affair as "The strange and twisted saga of the JFK file is part cautionary tale, part slapstick farce, a story of deception and self-delusion in the service of commerce and journalism."[3]
JournalistEdward Jay Epstein of theLos Angeles Times wrote: "Much of what is new… cannot be substantiated...When the pretensions of ‘helping the nation reclaim some of its history’ fade... this book turns out to be, alas, more about the deficiencies of investigative journalism than about the deficiencies of John F. Kennedy."[4]
In a more nuanced review forThe New York Times,Thomas Powers described the book as “a reporter’s book, not a historian’s,” acknowledging that Hersh “has done his legwork.” But he wrote, "The problem is not that Hersh has found nothing worth knowing but that everything he finds is used to prove Kennedy was wrong — not merely mistaken but corrupt, venal, selfish, untrustworthy, even traitorous."[5] InThe Independent, David Usborne acknowledged Hersh’s boldness and reach: "This was a book for which the omens could not have been more promising… After five years of research, Hersh offers a gaudy canvas of Kennedy sleaze over some 450 pages." While also noting the backlash, Usborne commented: "The reception has been astonishing; astonishing in its vitriol."[6]
In a strongly negative review forThe Washington Post, criticJonathan Yardley wrote: "This is a book based largely on personal testimony as given to Hersh in interviews...Hersh too often relies on the word of people who were peripheral to the main action… It is a patchwork of conspiracy theories, third-hand rumors, wild conjecture and anecdotal evidence," adding, "It is gossip—much of it malicious and/or mere hearsay—parading as investigative journalism."[7]
The Dark Side of Camelot became a bestseller and stirred widespread controversy. The forgery scandal overshadowed some of its more substantiated claims, and the book remains an example of the risks associated with investigative journalism based on unverifiable sources. A 2018 retrospective inThe Washington Post noted: "The Dark Side of Camelot was a big bestseller but was savaged by critics."[8]
