DEEP RESEARCH IS LIKE
PEELING BACK THE LAYERS OF AN ONION

Created by Lionel Waldo DeCuir

The most valuable information is often found beneath the first layer.

The Kennedy Assassination as an Example

Let me use the Kennedy assassination as an example. Many people begin researching the JFK assassination, find a link about the Zapruder film, and stop there. I do not stop with that information. I peel back another layer and continue researching. Such as.

• Who owned the Texas School Book Depository?

The official account says Lee Harvey Oswald fired at President Kennedy from the building. My next question was who owned it. My research led me to David Harold Byrd, who had political and social connections that deserve closer examination, including ties to President Lyndon B. Johnson. He was close friends to President LBJ.

• Who was Dealey Plaza named after?

Dealey Plaza was named for George Bannerman Dealey, longtime publisher of The Dallas Morning News. That discovery led me to examine Dealey’s civic influence, reported Masonic associations, and claims about symbols in the plaza. Each claim should be checked against reliable historical records.

Dealey was a Thirty-third-degree Scottish Rite Mason, Knight Templar, Shriner, and member of the Red Cross of Constantine.

• Who was the “Umbrella Man,” and where did he work?

The man identified to the House Select Committee on Assassinations was Louie Steven Witt. He was seen holding an open umbrella and moving it near the presidential motorcade shortly before the shots. Witt worked for the Rio Grande National Life Insurance Company. That finding raised another question: who were the other tenants in the same building, and were any government or military offices located there? My research resulted in finding out that Military Intelligence had an office in the building as well as immigration that Oswald visited.

• What did the Parkland Hospital medical staff observe?

I then studied the doctors and nurses who treated President Kennedy at Parkland Memorial Hospital. Several described wounds or observations that they believed were consistent with shots from the front, including the fatal head wound. Their statements should be compared carefully with the autopsy record, photographic evidence, sworn testimony, and later recollections.

The Lesson

Deep research means asking what comes next. One fact should lead to another question: Who owned the property? Who worked nearby? What relationships existed? What did eyewitnesses say? Which records confirm or contradict the claim?

It is very important to peel back every layer of your research. Do not stop at the first explanation. Keep asking questions, compare the evidence, and follow the facts wherever they lead.