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Journalism of Courage
WASHINGTON, July 17: America8217;s version of a royal family suffered another mortal blow when a passenger plane flown by John F Kennedy Jr, son of the assassinated President, was reported missing off the US East Coast on Friday night and remained untraced 12 hours later.
Authorities maintained that search was still underway for the single-engine six-seater plane, but with every passing hour, gloom spread over the country8217;s political and social spectrum. JFK Jr, as the Kennedy scion is widely known, was flying from a New Jersey airport to Martha8217;s Vineyard, haven of the rich and famous, for the wedding of his cousin, the daughter of his uncle Robert F Kennedy who was also assassinated in 1968 while running for President. JFK Jr was accompanied by his wife Carolyn Bessette, her sister and another person, authorities said.
In either event, the loss of the young and vibrant Kennedy heir 8212; the American equivalent of the Diana tragedy 8212; would compound the aura of mystique and tragedy that surrounds the family. Both John F Kennedy and his brother Robert F Kennedy fell to assassin8217;s bullets, while numerous other mishaps have haunted the family.
JFK Jr is considered the most Kennedyesque of the heirs 8212; an engaging and handsome clone of his father who was one of America8217;s most popular presidents. The world8217;s first exposure to the junior Kennedy came in 1963 when as a child of three, he stood beside his widowed mother Jacqueline and made a heart-tugging salute at his father8217;s funeral cortege.
As a young man, he abjured publicity but not public life. Although he forsook a political role, unlike first cousin John who went on to become a Congressman, JFK Jr has launched and edited since 1995 a widely acclaimed politicalmagazine called George. An intensely private individual, JFK Jr was considered the most eligible bachelor in the US for years till he suddenly and secretively married girlfriend Carolyn Bessette in 1996.
