Were the assassinations of the Sixties through Eighties part of a copycat effect?

With the anniversary of President Kennedy's death coming up, it made me think of a theory as to why there were so many assassinations and attempts during that period of American history (JFK, RFK, MLK, Malcolm X, and Lennon all died, attempts made on Wallace, Ford, and Reagan).

It's been theorized that one of the causes of today's mass shootings are copycats. With that in mind, is it likely that some kind of "Oswald effect" drove much of it, or was it due to unique circumstances that it happened in the same era?
 
It was a clever ASB trying to prevent a nuclear war breaking out or something horrible like a cold war won by the USSR or a totalitarian USA, while still making OTL a believable story.
 
MLK might be the weak link in the chain. My understanding is that Ray had heard about a standing bounty placed on King's head, and undertook the killing to collect the cash. Though I suppose the example of JFK might have inspired the guys who placed the bounty in the first place?
 
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