More than meets the eye in CIA agent’s Roswell story?

By Steve Hammons

The claim by veteran CIA officer Chase Brandon that the Roswell incident really was the crash of an extraterrestrial craft is sparking interest and controversy. Some researchers in the field suspect there is more to this story.

Is Brandon just promoting his new book – maybe hoping for a movie deal?

Is he putting out false information for some reason? Is he framing true information within a false story about finding a box marked “Roswell” in a secure vault of the historical documents area at CIA headquarters?

Is this part of public education and preparedness? Is his book itself actually fact-based fiction and a cover method to put out important information the public has a need to know?

Many of these elements could be in play. There could also be other factors to consider.

BEHIND THE SCENES

Some researchers with defense and intelligence backgrounds have noted that if essentially true sensitive facts are released and adequately mixed with inaccurate information, there may not be a violation of security procedures and requirements that Brandon and others are certainly subject to.

This idea was repeatedly brought forth by researchers regarding the so-called Project SERPO information releases. To some experienced researchers who looked at the Project SERPO claims, it seemed that true information was mixed with inaccurate statements. In that case, the alleged sources were reportedly from the DIA – the Defense Intelligence Agency.

This method is used in disinformation or manipulation activities – a skillful mixing of truth and lies, and framing information in certain ways to help achieve a desired outcome.

Another reasonable point has been brought up by researchers regarding Brandon’s statements: Wouldn’t he need to at least get permission from CIA to make such public statements? You would think so. If that is the case, is there more agency involvement than meets the eye?

A few researchers appear to suspect that Brandon’s statements may be part of a deception operation that we may not fully understand at this time.

Another reasonable view seems to be that this could actually be a way to release more information to the public about the truth of extraterrestrial visitation to Earth.

The fact that this experienced covert operations professional was also the agency’s liaison to the publishing business and Hollywood certainly seems relevant. He has been a technical advisor on many major movies and TV shows and apparently is involved with key people and media projects.

SAFE GRADUAL DISCLOSURE

Some people may feel that those involved in the UFO and extraterrestrial situation fall into two camps: those keeping secrets from the public, and those trying to discover and release such information to the public.

The truth is that some people are charged with doing both. These activities are probably not mutually exclusive. Disclosure of interesting information about extraterrestrial visitation may be thoroughly linked with appropriate safety and security considerations about certain aspects of the situation.

Additionally, certain methods of framing key points about the extraterrestrial visitation topic, such as “fictional” movies, TV shows and novels, could be considered very helpful in educating and preparing the public. If elements of Brandon’s new book are truth within the context of a fictional novel, as many novels are, then those elements are both a standard storytelling technique and possibly a way to release more information and improve our perspective.

Do CIA agents sometimes lie? Are they involved in deception operations? Is the sky blue?

Are they also committed to the United States of America and the American people? In most cases the answer would be yes. When dealing with complex and sensitive topics like extraterrestrial visitation and activities on and around Earth, dedicated Americans in the defense and intelligence communities are certainly involved.

What their involvement is probably varies among individuals, groups and organizations, and how the overall situation is evolving. And, their methods, tactics and strategies may also vary somewhat.

It’s clear that Brandon’s statements have already received widespread media attention, including major mainstream media platforms. This in itself seems to be quite helpful in getting us all thinking deeply about what might be going on.

(Two recent related articles on Joint Recon Study Group site: “Roswell was ET crash, says ex-CIA officer – what’s been going on since 1947?” and “CIA veteran says Roswell was extraterrestrial crash.”)

Journalism in media mix: New shows ‘Chasing UFOs,’ ‘Spacing Out’ help prepare public

By Steve Hammons

Two new shows exploring the UFO phenomena – “Chasing UFOs” on the National Geographic Channel and the online program “Spacing Out” from OpenMinds.TV in Arizona – attempt to find interesting, fun and credible ways to present information related to the UFO topic.

These programs join a long list of fictional (including fact-based fiction) and documentary-type TV shows and films over the years and decades.

The end result of these new efforts and the many other media projects that have gone before is that the general public has grown more aware of known UFO cases and elements involved, and what they might mean.

By being more aware, the public is also better prepared.

Improving general understanding about such an apparently complex situation is not always an easy task. To do it in a way that does not “dumb down” the topic and the audience has been an ongoing challenge for creators of TV and movies, researchers and writers.

At the same time, today’s audiences include adults, young adults, teens, tweens and even kids. Subjects like extraterrestrial spacecraft and intelligent visitors from elsewhere can be scary. The viewpoint of Earth humans about the Universe could change. In fact, this viewpoint is changing due to ongoing “edu-tainment” programs like “Chasing UFOs” and “Spacing Out.”

JOURNALISM AND NEWS MEDIA

Responsible news and journalism professionals also seem to be trying to bring objectivity to coverage of the UFO situation. Lee Speigel of the online Huffington Post is an experienced researcher and writer on this subject. His regular articles on HuffPost offer reasonable, down-to-Earth perspectives.

Actually, American journalism has been doing a better job of covering this subject over the decades than many people realize. In fact, newspaper reports and news media accounts of a range of UFO incidents have been important in much of our current understanding of the phenomena.

A review of newspaper articles going back to the 1800s and early 1900s include those describing mysterious “airships” seen by witnesses.

Other cases like the national and international press coverage of the Roswell incident in the summer of 1947 showed that, generally, news reporters did a decent job under the circumstances.

A few years later in the summer of 1952, headlines again appeared in newspapers about the multiple apparent objects over Washington, D.C. These objects were reportedly tracked on radar and chased by U.S. military aircraft. Coverage of this incident in newspapers was fairly thorough. (Interestingly, a member of the newly-formed Air Force “Project BLUE BOOK” at southwestern Ohio’s Wright-Patterson Air Force Base was in Washington at the time.)

Other cases large and small were covered by the news media over the years. For example, the 1973 “Coyne Incident” in the skies above central Ohio involving an Army Reserve helicopter crew is one very credible case that received solid coverage, at least by the local media.

And in 1997, the Phoenix, Arizona, incident generated intense local media coverage, as well as national and international news reports. A huge V-shaped or boomerang-shaped object or craft gently glided over the metro Phoenix “Valley of the Sun” region one evening. Later that evening, military flares were apparently dropped over a nearby Air Force practice range.

In 2006, it was Chicago Tribune transportation journalist Jon Hilkevitch who reported that multiple witnesses at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport claimed to have seen a gray, metallic-looking, disc-shaped object hovering over the airport, then zipping away into the clouds.

The 2008 Stephenville, Texas, sightings also credit good news coverage to local reporting. Small-town newspaper reporter Angelia Joiner followed up on reports from reliable local citizens. Before long, major national and international news media also provided reasonably thorough coverage of a series of incidents and sightings in the region.

BLENDING JOURNALISM AND ENTERTAINMENT

Is it possible to successfully integrate the factual reporting of conventional journalism with more creative and engaging media approaches?

It seems to have been done well in many films, TV shows and books. Elements of fact-based fiction can come into play to tell the story, explore the possibilities and prepare ourselves for further developments on the UFO topic.

Speculation and creative leeway may be needed in some cases because conventional journalism is usually limited to that which has been determined and is factual – the “who, what, when, where, why and how.”

Behind the scenes, there might be much more going on but that information is too sensitive to be released to the general public, probably for a number of reasons. National security or global security could be involved. Gradual public preparedness and limited public information might be considered a wise approach. And some aspects of the situation could be so complex or even troubling that they should be closely held or disseminated on a need-to-know basis only.

Various kinds of approaches in TV shows, movies, books and other media platforms can sometimes help fill in gaps about UFOs and what they might mean. Some scenarios and perspectives in some media activities appear to be quite credible and others less so. But most such projects and products seem to help move the ball forward in public understanding.

“Chasing UFOs” and “Spacing Out” seem like two more examples of reasonable efforts to try to find effective and fun ways for more Americans to learn about the apparently complex and sensitive topic of UFOs.