Unpacking the Myth of John F. Kennedy Jr.

On with Kara Swisher

New York Magazine

Society & Culture

4.2 • 3.2K Ratings

🗓️ 11 August 2025

⏱️ 46 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

More than 25 years after his tragic death, John F. Kennedy Jr. remains one of the most captivating figures in American public life. He was handsome, charming, and born into political royalty — and when he died in a plane crash in 1999, he was fighting to save George, his glossy political magazine, and weighing a run for New York governor. Ryan Murphy is producing American Love Story, a new series about John and his wife Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy; some QAnon conspiracy theorists believe JFK Jr. is still alive; and CNN has just released the first episode of a three-part documentary series called American Prince: JFK. Jr. So why can’t we look away? Why are John and Carolyn still objects of fascination, speculation, and even conspiracy? What does our continued obsession say about us — and about American political culture? Kara talks to two close friends of John and Carolyn, Gary Ginsberg and Carole Radziwill, who are featured in American Prince. Together with Kara, they reflect how myth and reality collided in the story of John and Carolyn, what George got right (and wrong) about modern politics, and how the media scrutiny that continues to shape John and Carolyn's legacy. Ginsberg met John at Brown University, and he was the senior editor and legal counsel at George magazine. He went on to become an assistant counsel to President Clinton and a senior executive at News Corp and Time Warner. He was also a consulting producer on American Prince and the author of First Friends: The Powerful, Unsung (And Unelected) People Who Shaped Our Presidents. Radziwill is a former journalist. Her work at ABC News won a Peabody and multiple Emmys. She’s also a former cast member of the Real Housewives of New York, and her late husband, Anthony Radziwill, was JFK Jr.’s cousin and best friend. Radziwill is the author of three books, including the bestselling memoir, What Remains, and she recently launched a newsletter on Substack, Life with Carole Radziwill. Questions? Comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	You don't want to be an influencer?
0:01.5	Hello.
0:13.4	Hi, everyone, from New York Magazine in the Vox Media Podcast Network.
0:16.8	This is On with Kara Swisher, and I'm Kara Swisher.
0:19.6	Today we're going to talk about John F. Kennedy, Jr His life, his legacy, and what our culture's ongoing fascination with him says about America.
0:27.6	John, nobody who knew him, called him John John, was world famous from the moment his conception was announced.
0:33.6	For years, he was considered the world's most eligible bachelor, and his entire adult
0:38.2	life was spent at the intersection of media, celebrity, and politics. He founded George, a glossy
0:43.2	magazine that covered politics with a style usually reserved for Hollywood. He seemed to foresee that
0:48.4	power and entertainment were bound to collide in unexpected ways long before the rest of the
0:53.3	political press caught on.
0:54.9	He's also the subject of a new documentary series from CNN called American Prince JFK Jr.
1:00.1	that airs for three consecutive weekends.
1:02.2	The first episode just premiered last Saturday, and my guests are Gary Ginsburg and Carol
1:07.1	Radswell, two close friends of John's, who feature prominently in the documentary.
1:12.3	Gary met John at Brown University, and he was a senior editor and legal counsel at George.
1:17.6	Ginsburg went on to become an assistant counsel to President Clinton and a senior executive at News Corp and Time Warner.
1:24.0	He understands the inner workings of media and politics, as well as anyone, and I've known him for a very long time. He also was a consulting producer on American Prince and the author
1:32.4	of First Friends, the powerful, unsung, and unelected people who shaped our presidents.
1:37.9	Carol is a former journalist. Her work at ABC News, won a Peabody, and multiple Emmys. She's also a
1:43.7	former cast member of the Real Housewives of New York and her late husband, Anthony Radzawill, was JFK Jr's cousin and best friend.
1:52.0	Radzawil is the author of three books, including The Best Selling Memoir, What Remains, and she recently launched a newsletter on Substack.
	...

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