On November 29, 1961, President John F. Kennedy held a press conference in the State Department Auditorium in Washington, D.C. JFK was the first President to hold "live" televised press conferences. Presidents before had held the conferences with the press in the privacy of their office & anything said that was "off the record" was not permitted to be published. JFK's conferences were not "staged". That is, he did not know what specific questions would be asked. This allowed him to "think on his feet" and often his wit came into play with his answers. The press conferences were always televised.
