Fifty years after John F. Kennedy became president of the United States a new application for the iPad dedicated to the life of assassinated President aspires to become a multimedia museum for history buffs. The application, designed by New York historian and editor Marc Schulman, includes a new biography entitled “JFK History Maker – A Fifty Year Retrospective” as well as photographs, videos, audio clips, texts of speeches, letters and agenda.
“The paper books are limited in the sense that you can not see documents, videos and photographs in which it is based (the text),” said Schulman, who created the application while writing the biography.
The author gives the example of someone who wants to learn about Kennedy and civil rights. The user could search for their meetings on the subject and how much time they spent, watching videos and read the full text of the president’s speeches.
“There are many different levels. With the application you can get to the bottom of truth, and do your own research, you need not rely only on my voice as a biographer,” said Schulman. The application, called JFK Historymaker, went on sale this month. Schulman said that their application to the U.S. Civil War, published last summer, is used in schools.
A survey conducted in November by Gallup said they still receive the highest approval rating-85 percent-of Americans. ”One thing I’ve really come to appreciate over the years researching it is that JFK was an extraordinary president, and not just because he was murdered,” he said.