Nexus - 1502 - New Times Magazine-pages

Page Content (OCR)

flying saucers and extraterrestrial life justified debunking all about contactee claims that were being exaggerated by the press: contactee reports. "...the press unfortunately lump all 'spacemen' reports together, The Durant Report created the necessary legal justification to causing many people to reject all of the UFO evidence". *’ debunk evidence provided by contactees, regardless of the merits Essentially, Keyhoe viewed contactee reports as an of their claims. This is evidenced in the way in which the FBI and embarrassment that needed to be separated from the more other intelligence agencies privately interacted with contactees and scientifically oriented UFO research. Other prominent UFO then made public statements or leaked information to the media in researchers followed Keyhoe's approach, thus creating a major ways that questioned the integrity of the contactees. For example, schism among those convinced that extraterrestrial life was Adamski had communicated with the FBI, AFOSI and the visiting Earth. Pentagon over the content of material that he would put in his The successful debunking of reports of flying saucers and books or in documents he would present to the public. This is not extraterrestrial life made it possible for the CIA, FBI and military surprising, given that many contactees, like intelligence agencies to move to the third Adamski, were former military servicemen phase of their covert psychological who understood the importance of not doing operations: full-scale counterintelligence anything to threaten national security. warfare techniques to disrupt and neutralise Adamski had been led to believe that he was the contactee movement. cleared to distribute a particular document, . and he made public statements to this effect. What the public Phase Three: Galactic COINTELPRO The FBI disagreed and subsequently made public its views about Adamski's alleged COINTELPRO was a counterintelligence program initiated in 1956 against politica did not realise was that "fraudulent, improper" behaviour in a way intelligence agencies dissidents and reportedly ended in 1971. It that delivered a "huge blow to Adamski's was primarily run by the FBI; other credibility". such as the FBI and intelligence agencies such as the CIA an At the time when the general public AFOSI were intent on NSA assisted in select covert activities. believed unquestionably in the accuracy of COINTELPRO assumed that political statements made by public officials, debunking contactees dissidents in the United States were suet negative comments would be as a matter of policy being inPuenced py foreign Powers in sufficient to end one's career or ways deemed a threat to nationa credibility. Certainly, many in the due to the threat they security. In the case of both contactees caucer phenomenon now believed poses! BoleMielie) foreign powers" was thought to just Adamski to be a fraud. What the public security. military-style counterintelligence did not realise was that intelligence programs to disrupt and neutralise these agencies such as the FBI and AFOSI groups. were intent on debunking contactees as There were two significant a matter of policy due to the threat they differences in how COINTELPRO was posed to national security. used against political dissidents and Another way in which contactee contactees respectively. First, while claims were debunked was to have intelligence agents were fully briefed tabloid newspapers such as the about the "foreign powers" influencing National Enquirer publish sensational reports that embellished political dissidents, it is unlikely they were fully briefed about actual contactee testimonies or were entirely fabricated by staff contactees. Second, while COINTELPRO's use against political reporters. Any subsequent investigations by researchers would dissidents was exposed and apparently ended in 1971, the demonstrate that such claims were exaggerated or unfounded, COINTELPRO used against contactees was never exposed. The thereby tainting the contactees and UFO research more generally. program almost certainly continues to the present. What was not generally known was that the National Enquirer In 1975, a US Senate committee chaired by Senator Frank was created and controlled by known CIA assets whose covert Church investigated COINTELPRO's methods and targets, and in assignment was to ridicule the entire flying saucer phenomenon.” 1976 published a detailed report.** The Church Committee With its sensationalistic tabloid style, it was one of the chief described COINTELPRO as going "...beyond the collection of instruments of the covert psychological operations used to debunk _ intelligence to secret action defined to ‘disrupt’ and ‘neutralize’ contactee claims and flying saucer reports. The National target groups and individuals. The techniques were adopted Enquirer and other media sources covering contactee claims were wholesale from wartime counterintelligence..."” part of the "educational program" that required the debunking of The committee characterised COINTELPRO as a series of flying saucer reports. covert actions taken against American citizens and part of a The National Enquirer succeeded so well that influential UFO "rough, tough, dirty business", according to William Sullivan, researchers determined to establish the scientific merit in assistant to the FBI Director.” Between 1960 and 1974, over investigating UFO reports became unwitting allies to the covert 500,000 investigations of potential anti-government subversives psychological program to dismiss contactee claims. This is had been launched but no charges were ever laid under statutes evidenced in remarks by leading UFO researchers such as Major concerning overthrow of the US government.*' Donald Keyhoe, who emphasised the need to separate genuine The Church Committee grouped the activities conducted by UFO reports from "the mass of wild tales and usually ridiculous COINTELPRO under the following headings: (a) General Efforts ‘contactee' claims".”° to Discredit; (b) Media Manipulation; (c) Distorting Data to Keyhoe and other UFO researchers were greatly concerned Influence Government Policy and Public Perceptions; (d) What the public did not realise was that intelligence agencies such as the FBI and debunking contactees as a matter of policy due to the threat they posed to national security. 56 = NEXUS AFOSI were intent on www.nexusmagazine.com FEBRUARY — MARCH 2008