# John Kerry and 8mm camera

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-kerry-and-8mm-camera/259575>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 12, 2004, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-kerry-and-8mm-camera/259575 "2004-08-12T18:59:55Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![magellan01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@magellan01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magellan01)\
**Post date:** [August 12, 2004, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-kerry-and-8mm-camera/259575/1 "2004-08-12T18:59:55Z")

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Does anyone know how John Kerry came to have that 8mm camera with him in Vietnam? And who is filming as he is walking around after the battle?

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**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\
**Post date:** [August 12, 2004, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-kerry-and-8mm-camera/259575/2 "2004-08-12T19:23:38Z")

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According to this [Drudge Report](http://www.drudgereport.com/dnc8.htm) (take it for what you will) Kerry bought the camera at a PX at Cam Ranh Bay. I don’t know who was filming him.

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**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\
**Post date:** [August 12, 2004, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-kerry-and-8mm-camera/259575/3 "2004-08-12T21:12:56Z")

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8mm cameras were cheap and plentiful in those days, even moreso at an overseas PX.

The Drudge Report is not exactly a reliable news source. Mr. Drudge freely admits he doesn’t have the time or resources to fact-check stories before he runs them.

The story of the “swift boat veterans” is rather controversial, and a web search will soon show you a wide variety of viewpoints. It would be hasty to make up your mind after seeing only one.

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**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\
**Post date:** [August 12, 2004, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-kerry-and-8mm-camera/259575/4 "2004-08-12T22:47:07Z")

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Just to clarify, I wasn’t offering up Drudge for any purpose other than the location of the camera purchase. It was the only cite I found after checking about a half-dozen that gave a location for the camera purchase. I make no comment on Drudge’s reliability in general beyond what I already said, nor do I make any comment about the veracity of the report itself.