Mr Wheeler, who was the BBC's Washington correspondent for eight years and reported on the assassination of Robert Kennedy and the Chappaquiddick accident involving Senator Edward Kennedy, told the BBC that he did not think that "wider America" regarded JFK Junior as an important figure.

Wheeler: End of the Kennedy dynasty

"I think inevitably that every time there is a major Kennedy tragedy, and there's been one piled on another over the last 60 years, Americans tend to go over the top and I think this is happening now," he said.

But he added: "The interesting thing about this man [JFK Junior] is that he wasn't reaching for the stars, he wasn't the crown prince of America, he didn't regard himself as this.

Charles Wheeler explains what another Kennedy tragedy means to America

"He had to live with the Kennedy legacy as he was the only son of JFK. But he tried to live a very ordinary life and did live an ordinary life.

"All these reactions are coming out of places like Manhattan. I don't think really for wider America, distant America, JFK Junior was an important figure."

Mr Wheeler said he thought part of the attraction of the Kennedy family was their sense of daring. "There does seem to be a curious family tradition of risk-taking," he said.

But the veteran correspondent also believes that the Kennedy glamour of previous generations has worn off.

"The Kennedy dynasty died about 30 years ago. I don't think this younger generation of Kennedys have been able to change that, or have even wanted to," he said.

"I think the younger generation of Kennedys simply haven't measured up to the others and people have to accept this but they don't.

"This may be the end of the media hype after this and they may be allowed to live fairly ordinary lives."