President Donald Trump released 64,000 pages regarding information on the assassination of former President John F. Kennedy. These documents were published Tuesday evening, without redactions, which are usually included in public documents to prevent the release of compromising data.

The lack of censorship consequently exposed at least one C.I.A agent’s personnel file, and the Social Security numbers belonging to hundreds of other people. This group included congressional staff members, intelligence researchers, a former ambassador, and others.

Trump described the publication of these files as “government transparency at its finest,” but this choice has proven itself controversial, especially amongst those who had their personal information posted.

“I consider it almost criminal,” said William A. Harnage, a former government contractor whose Social Security number was among the information declassified.

On the contrary, Tulsi Gabbard, the director of National Intelligence has applauded Trump for the manner in which the files were released.

“President Trump is ushering in a new era of maximum transparency,” she wrote to the public via X on Tuesday. “Today, per his direction, previously redacted JFK Assassination Files are being released to the public with no redactions.”

The White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, has since acknowledged the material released, saying the administration was working to help those affected.

“At the request of the White House, the National Archives and the Social Security Administration immediately put together an action plan to proactively help individuals whose personal information was released in the files,” said Leavitt.

Many believed that the publication of these documents was bound to go wrong, considering Trump’s abrupt announcement at the John F. Kennedy center, reporting that the Kennedy Files would be released the following day.

Critics of the release believe that the incident was a result of the F.B.I rushing to meet the President’s demands. 

Despite controversy, some believe that releasing these files was a necessary step towards improving transparency in our government, and refining our democracy. The decision to make the Kennedy Files public continues to be debated amongst people online.