“Love Story” is a new TV show following the relationship of John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, a prominent couple of the 1990s. JFK Jr. was the son of the 35th president, John F. Kennedy. Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy was known as a fashion publicist and worked for Calvin Klein.
Ryan Murphy is a well-known producer and creator in Hollywood, responsible for shows such as “Glee,” “Monster,” and “American Horror Story.” He often utilizes real-life stories as concepts and ideas for shows. Through this, he monetizes off of the lives of others, making content based on personal events that he should have no role in.
Murphy not only makes television shows based on these events, he also takes advantage of these people by altering or adding on to their experiences to draw in more attention from audiences.
Additionally, the Kennedy family is a prominent American family, known for the surplus of losses they have experienced. Considering the assassination of John F. Kennedy, as well as the one of his brother Bobby, plus the plane crash that took the lives of JFK Jr. and Carolyn and countless others, it’s safe to say that the Kennedy family has gone through enough.
With all of the constant spotlight in the media based solely off of the losses that have burdened them, it seems as though the family can never catch a break. Rather than respecting their privacy and their multiple wishes for it, Ryan Murphy took advantage of this story and made a show out of it.
The couple was unfortunately in a plane crash in 1999, meaning they only passed away 27 years ago. While this show would be disrespectful regardless of when it is made, it does not help that many individuals who had to deal with the loss are now being burdened again with the pain of their false remembrance.
Although they were a very glamorized couple who faced a lot of publicity and spotlight when they were alive, they are nonetheless just people with feelings. They continue to face backlash, even past their deaths, due to the false light spread over their story.
Their relationship, as well as the potential problems they may have resided in, should be not cast on the television for everyone to criticize and find entertainment in. Rather than leaving them to rest in peace, Ryan Murphy chooses to make a show dramatizing their relationship for everyone to see.Â
Furthermore, active members of the family have shown their resentment towards this show. Jack Schlossberg, the nephew of JFK Jr. and Bessette-Kennedy, has stated his immense distaste for the program. He has stated “This is not a documentary.”
Sharing the same thoughts of most of the rest of his family, Jack has voiced his concerns of Murphy’s motives, believing that he could at least use the money produced from the show for a good cause. Rather, Murphy exhibits extreme greed by taking advantage of their story, without any concern for the couple’s image.Â
Overall, I believe that “Love Story” is a show that goes completely against the wishes of the Kennedy family, monetizing off of loss and the images of a well-known couple. John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy deserve to be remembered for who they truly were, rather than who writers and producers are trying to make them out to be.