David Hume Kennerly Blog
My Thirteen Presidential Elections
This 2020 presidential election campaign is my thirteenth. I’ve covered them all since 1968, except for 1972 when I was in Vietnam photographing the war. (I have the best excuses.) Due to Covid-19, this year I only caught the early action in February, during the New Hampshire Primary. Thankfully it produced some telling images. Campaigning […] Read More
The Day Hillary Clinton Lost the Election
I’d been covering the 2016 presidential campaign for CNN since the year before, but when I showed up to photograph an appearance by Hillary Clinton at St. Anselm College in New Hampshire, I hadn’t seen her in a couple of months. The first time I photographed her was when she was a young lawyer working […] Read More
John McCain (1936-2018): A Remembrance
A Remembrance Two years ago today, September 2, 2018, Senator John McCain was buried on the grounds of his beloved U.S. Naval Academy. John’s family asked me to document his last journey from Arizona, to Washington, D.C., and to his final resting place in Annapolis. It was an honor for me to do so. There […] Read More
Uncropped: The Story Behind “The Hug” Photo
This is the first time I’ve unveiled my uncropped “The Hug” photo from the dedication of the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) in 2016. This version honors the late Rep. John Lewis who died July 17th. Along with First Lady Michelle Obama and former President George W. Bush, former First Lady […] Read More
You’re Fired!
“You’re Fired!” The Story Behind the Photo I covered the 2016 presidential campaign for CNN. The last two weeks were spent with Donald Trump’s traveling circus. (It was my 12th campaign, and they all seem that way!). I spent weeks listening to crowds chanting, “Build a wall, kill them all! Lock her up! Hang […] Read More
Democratic Presidential Candidate Joe Biden, Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, February 09, 2020.
I’ve been photographing Joe Biden on and off since I returned from the Vietnam War in 1973. This latest photograph of him was made February 9 this year in Hampton, New Hampshire, as he campaigned for president. In this frame the former Vice President was talking about his son Beau who died in 2015. The […] Read More
Robert F. Kennedy, Portland, Oregon, October 25, 1966.
Senator Robert F. Kennedy, Portland, Oregon, October 25, 1966. In 1966 as a 19-year-old cub photographer working for the Oregon Journal, I had the opportunity to photograph Sen. Robert Kennedy when he came to town. Kennedy was the first national politician I covered, and he made one hell of an impression. Like most people my […] Read More
The Girl with the Cap Gun and ‘Tude
One of the true joys of having the time to go back through my archives at a more leisurely pace is uncovering the occasional gem that was hiding away. In this case one that has been unseen for over 50 years. I took this in my Brooklyn, New York, neighborhood in 1969, a place that […] Read More