In January 1959 very few people realized that Castro was a Communist. He had just taken power. I was only in grade school at the time but my recollection is that the American media was very positive at first because Batista was considered a bad guy who needed to be ousted. It was only a little while later that people began to learn about the real Fidel.
As for the Nov. 22, 1963, photo--has anyone established that Cruz, Sr., was in Dallas that day? The guy in the photo could be someone else.