Vallee, Forbidden Science – Volume Three – Journals 1980-1989 – On the Trail of Hidden Truths. to p.117 (of 513).
Clark, UFO Encyclopedia, (3rd Edition) Vol. 2 to p.1290 (of 1462). Topics: George Hunt Williamson (1926-1986), Zeidman, Jennie (1932 – ). (End of Text) The remainder of the volume consists of pp. 1291 to 1409, Bibliography, (over 5,000 entries); and pp. 1410 to 1462, Index
Weaver, R. Backstory: Roswell (Kindle Edition) (65% complete).
Weaver, R. The Roswell Report – Fact versus fiction in the New Mexico Desert (archive.org). To p.226 (of 991).
University of Colorado. Final Report of the Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects. (archive.org). To p. 69 (of 971).
Progress on Research Papers:
MJ-12: AFOSI.
Read, took notes, noted acronyms and glossary:
Procedures Governing the Activities of DoD Intelligence Components That Affect United States Persons, DOD Directive 5240 IR
Oversight of Intelligence Activities, AF Instruction (AFI) 14-10
Special Investigations: Counterintelligence, AF Instruction (AFI) 71-101 V4
(Before proceeding further, I plan on reading EO 12333, the Patriot Act, and the Atomic Energy Act).
Other:
Appeared On:
”On Target With Larry Sparano”, Friday, May 28, 2021.
“Spaced Out Radio UFO Disclosure Post Game Show” (Panel) Saturday, May 29, 2021. Hosts Grant Cameron, Nicole Sakach and Dave Scott
Vallee, Forbidden Science – Volume Three – Journals 1980-1989 – On the Trail of Hidden Truths. to p.106 (of 513).
Clark, UFO Encyclopedia, (3rd Edition) Vol. 2 to p.1283 (of 1462). Topics: Washington National Radar Case; Waves; Webb, Walter n (1934-); Wednesday Phenomenon; Westchester Sightings; Whitman Contact Claim; Wilkins, Harold Tom (1891-1960); Willamette Pass Photo Hoax.
Weaver, R. Backstory: Roswell (Kindle Edition) (49% complete).
Weaver, R. The Roswell Report – Fact versus fiction in the New Mexico Desert (archive.org). To p. 211(of 991).
University of Colorado. Final Report of the Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects. (archive.org). To p. 53 (of 971).
Progress on Research Papers:
MJ-12: AFOSI.
Reread Sparks, B., Greenwood,B. (2007). The Secret Pratt Tapes and the Origins of MJ-12. Created schedule of references from footnotes 96-105. Began reading current government policies corresponding to referenced items.
Other:
Appeared on “Dead Hand Radio, Livestream”, 05/24/21.
Completed recording notes from Vallee Forbidden Science 2
Weaver, R. Backstory: Roswell (Kindle Edition) (35% complete).
(Purchased). Randle, K. UFOs and the Deep State. (Kindle Edition).
Weaver, R. The Roswell Report – Fact versus fiction in the New Mexico Desert (archive.org). To p. 165 (of 991).
University of Colorado. Final Report of the Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects. (archive.org). To p. 24 (of 971).
Haines, G. CIA’s Role In The Study of UFOs, 1947-90
Progress on Research Papers:
Posted MJ-12: Psychological Warfare and Strategic Deception on this blog. It has also been posted on uapresearch.com.
MJ-12: OSI. Studying OSI website. (The Air Force and the Space Force both fall under the Secretary of the Air Force. Because AFOSI is now responsible for both, it is being “rebranded” as OSI.)
“I am not suggesting that secret agents are going around the world giving these thousands of people individual suggestions to see UFOs. As we found out when we began developing the science of propaganda during the last war, you don’t need to do all that. A few well placed stories, a well-planned program publicizing sensational incidents, will do marvels” …. ‘Major Murphy’ to Jacques Vallee in Messengers of Deception.
Majestic Twelve (MJ-12) is a purported secret committee of top scientists, military and government officials managing the capture of alien vehicles and humanoid bodies. The terms Majestic Twelve, MJ-12 and MAJIC were introduced into the public domain when two UFO researchers, William Moore and Timothy Good separately released their copies of the documents in 1987. The MJ-12 notion emerged from research by Bill Moore and Stanton Friedman into the so-called Roswell Incident in the late 1970s. After interviewing a number of witnesses, Friedman and Moore strongly suspected the U.S. government had recovered a flying saucer with its occupants. If true, an organized plan of study under extreme secrecy by an elite group would have been inevitable.
The inception of the MJ-12 affair involved the onset of three documents known now as the Eisenhower Briefing Document, the Truman/Forrestal Memo and the Cutler/Twining Memorandum. But they were only the beginning. In subsequent years, many other documents and claims were made, including the story of Bob Lazar, the SOM1-01 manual, the Timothy Cooper documents in the 1990s, the SERPO story, claims made by “Dan Burisch”, and the appearance of the “ULTRA Top Secret” document on the Internet in 2017. Rumors about MJ-12 began to swirl in the early 1980s and the affair has continued to the present day.
The MJ-12 legend aligns with a number of stories of recovered UFOs and sightings of alien bodies at several locations on military installations, with Wright-Patterson Air Force base being the most prominent. If any of these events actually occurred, it is difficult to imagine such a situation without top scientists studying the problem under heavy security. If the recovered UFO scenarios were a reality, the national policy implications would have been obvious.
Taken overall, the MJ-12 documents and stories have many problems. Under scrutiny, the original group of papers were almost certainly not authentic. Nearly all of the documents (comprising over 2,000 pages in total from 1984 to the present) arose either anonymously or through unnamed sources. The surreptitious and covert nature of these communications over a period of nearly forty years suggests there may be a deeper pattern involved.
Some of the MJ-12 documents refer to psychological warfare, while others point to deception. In this paper we will look at these allusions and contemplate how the appearance of the documents and related claims might themselves be forms of psychological warfare, propaganda and deception. We will also consider how the several official pronouncements by the U.S. government concerning the UFO phenomenon might be analyzed as propaganda exercises.
Robert and Ryan Wood undertook a thorough study of all the known MJ-12 related documents during the 1990s and 2000s by visiting the U.S. National Archives. They hired a qualified document examiner (James A. Black) and conducted other research. The Woods are decidedly “pro” MJ-12, with Ryan authoring the website majesticdocuments.com.
A theory on the origin and motivation behind the MJ-12 papers came from Joseph Firmage’s “International Space Sciences Organization,” (ISSO). Firmage, a former internet entrepreneur, became interested in Majestic Twelve and assisted the Woods in their investigative efforts. Under the moniker of ISSO, an article was published on the (now defunct) website isso.org titled “Deceptive UFO Documents – Doubt, Debate and Daunting Questions”.1 Dated November 25, 1999, no author is identified, although Firmage wrote the introduction. The article argues the MJ-12 documents (including the SOM1-01 manual and the group from Timothy Cooper in the 1990s) might be products of cold war “covert psychological warfare”. Since many foreign governments engage in various forms of deception, including forged documents, this theme was put forward as a plausible explanation for the questioned MJ-12 papers.
Ryan Wood published a rebuttal of the above mentioned article (presumably in the year 2000).2 He argued no plausible gain would have been accomplished by the U.S. government in issuing such spurious documents in the hope they would somehow mislead a foreign power, namely the Soviet Union. In his rebuttal, Wood lists a set of criteria in order for such a covert effort to be effective. None of his criteria were met. (Wood neglects to consider if such documents were proffered for a covert purpose, the objective could have been to attract foreign agents for the purpose of monitoring and tracking.)
In 1950, U.S. policy makers were extremely concerned with the prospect of Stalin overrunning western Europe. A series of events including The “Long Telegram” by George Kennan (“Containment”), Churchill’s “Iron Curtain” speech in March of 1946, and the Berlin blockade in 1948 led to far-reaching thinking by senior U.S. officials on measures to counter Soviet aggression. A military strategy was not enough, and psychological techniques took on increasing importance. The Psychological Strategy Board (PSB) was formed in 1950. The State Department originally proposed the PSB fall under its purview, but President Truman placed it under the National Security Council in a secret directive in April of 1951.3
Psychological warfare is the application of propaganda for specific purposes. The United States began using propaganda during World War I, and seriously studied and applied principles of propaganda and deception during World War II. The lessons learned during the war were not forgotten, and propaganda and strategic deception have retained a place in the U.S. arsenal of tools and weapons up to the present day. Psychological warfare is normally applied during wartime, but similar concepts in the form of advertising, media attention and “perception management” can be pointed to civilian populations and groups in peacetime as well. These applications can be both long-term (strategic) and short term (tactical). In order for propaganda and deception to be effective, planners must have a thorough understanding of a target group’s mentality. The messages can then be imparted through a number of channels including leaflets, radio and many others.4
In wartime, a government targets enemy troops and civilians while maintaining morale in both its own military and home population. During peacetime, the conventions of psychological operations are utilized in executing both domestic and foreign policies. Media activity during Vietnam and other U.S. wars provide many examples. While over the cold war era long-term strategic precepts were carried out, specific tactics could have been directed toward smaller domestic groups. Whether these doctrines might have been practiced during the term of the modern UFO period is a subject of our discussion.
For our purposes, we will define propaganda as information deliberately spread in order to achieve one or more specific goals. Propaganda and psychological operations overlap with public relations, advertising, civil affairs, crisis management and public information programs. These efforts are sometimes termed “perception management” and “strategic influence”.
Propaganda can come in three forms: white, grey and black. White propaganda originates from the source it claims; grey propaganda doesn’t identify its source; and black propaganda misleads about the source it comes from. Generally, we consider white propaganda to be overt, while grey and black propaganda are covert and deceptive.
Deception applied during war (hot or cold) comprises the creation of impressions concerning intentions and capabilities. These can be positive, as in falsely creating the image of something that doesn’t exist, or negative by concealing a reality.
(Please see Appendix 1 for a timeline of U.S. psychological warfare programs up to 2003)
In Anachronism, James Carrion argues World War II deception planners brought forward their knowledge and skills learned in World War II. Many of the most expert “deceivers” during the war were British, and taught their craft to the apprentice Americans. U.S. deception planners learned quickly. Near the end of the war, senior policymakers were getting wise to Soviet espionage. Cryptographers and analysts focused on cracking the Soviet code books by cleverly inducing the Russians to communicate with Moscow. These messages sometimes included anglicized words which did not translate into the Russian language. Because the Soviets had duplicated their one-time code pads, the British and Americans made progress in deciphering the Russian code books. Carrion cites examples in May and June of 1947 referring to newspaper articles about a weapon comparable to the atom bomb developed in New Zealand. These articles may have played roles in the scheme to manipulate the Soviets.5,6
The Ghost Rocket phenomenon began in Sweden in May of 1946 with reports peaking in July of that year. The objects were mysterious and they appeared to self-destruct resulting in little to no physical remains found. The consensus seemed to be they were German V-1 weapons fired from Peenemunde, Germany as well as from Estonia.7 Carrion theorizes the Ghost Rocket reports were hyped in the U.S. media by the “Rosetta”8 deception group (U.S. and British psychological warfare and deception planners) in order to generate Soviet diplomatic cable traffic for the purpose of deciphering Soviet code books as mentioned above. (“Ghost Rockets” have been studied and documented extensively by UFO historian Jan Aldrich.)
In The Roswell Deception, James Carrion applies the strategic deception theory forward to the UFO problem. Based on numerous declassified sources, combined Navy, Army and British cryptologic analysts and deception planners planted articles in newspapers hinting the U.S. had flying saucer technology. The purpose was to prompt Soviet residents in major American cities to send coded messages to Moscow containing anglicized words (“gardening”).9 As Soviet code books were gradually decrypted, such words provided clues that enabled U.S. authorities to trace Russian agents. These agents could either be turned into double-agents, or could be fed plausible but false information. Through judicious use of cooperative journalists, editors and publishers, certain stories could go “viral”, causing Russian authorities to take notice.10 Carrion speculates that the Roswell incident was just such a ruse.
It is important to note not only were psychological operations being executed from World War II on, but extensive academic research in“mass communication studies” was conducted, especially during the mid-1950s. The United States had become one of the world’s two superpowers and controlling elites within government, industry and academia were gravely concerned about how to manage communication strategies vis a vis the Soviet bloc. Western Europe as well as particular third world countries had high priority. Certain non-profit contractors were funded directly through the government, while other studies were supported by private sources such as the Carnegie Corporation and the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations. There is reason to suspect some of the money from covert originators such as the CIA was laundered through these private organizations.11
An Air Force effort known as Project Revere studied the effect of leaflet dropping and the spreading of information in several western states:
Project Revere scientists dropped millions of leaflets containing civil defense propaganda or commercial advertising from U.S. Air Force planes over selected cities and towns in Washington state, Idaho, Montana, Utah, and Alabama. They then surveyed the target populations to create a relatively detailed record of the diffusion of the sample message among residents. The air force sponsorship of the program was regarded as classified at the time and was not acknowledged in Dodd’s early report on the project in Public Opinion Quarterly. Later accounts by Dodd, DeFleur, and others were more frank, however. The air force invested about a “third of a million 1950s dollars” in the effort … making it one of the largest single investments in communication studies from the end of World War II through the mid-1950s. This medium was an important part of U.S. Air Force propaganda efforts in the Korean conflict, in CIA propaganda in Eastern Europe, and in U.S. nuclear war-fighting strategy during the 1950s, but it had no substantial ‘civilian’ application whatsoever.12
Psychological warfare was a concern of the so-called Robertson Panel, which met for several days in January 1953. After a spate of UFO sighting activity in July of 1952, President Truman requested CIA director and alleged MJ-12 member General Walter Bedell Smith look into how the USAF was handling the UFO issue. Smith immediately ordered the CIA Deputy Director of Intelligence to organize a study group within the CIA Office of Scientific Intelligence (OSI). Smith was given a briefing on the UFO issue in August 1952, which included concerns about psychological warfare, public gullibility, problems in radar identification, possible Soviet exploitation of UFOs, and public panic.13,14
It’s well known in UFO circles the Robertson Panel Report dismissed the overall UFO controversy as a collection of misidentifications and misunderstandings. The panel’s recommendations were principally: 1) Creation of a training program for military personnel to better understand how misidentifications occur, 2) (that) “…national security agencies take immediate steps to strip the Unidentified Flying Objects of the special status they have been given…”, 3) A public education program, 4) Debunking efforts, and 5) Monitoring of civilian UFO study groups.15,16
UFO historian Brad Sparks remarked the CIA Office of Scientific Intelligence as well as the Battelle Institute were “played” by the Air Force in rushing through the Robertson Panel event.17 It’s important to note General Samford in 1952 desired the government rely on hard data from satellites and other instruments rather than on anecdotal reports. Blue Book would serve as a public relations effort until such satellite tracking could be accessed. According to Sparks, the termination of Blue Book in 1970 happened concurrently with satellite infrared systems becoming operational. This may be more than a coincidence.18
Given the cold war era, it is not difficult to imagine a program controlling the public perception of the UFO phenomenon. As mentioned previously, policy makers within the CIA, the Air Force and the National Security Council pressed initiatives to drain UFOs of their mystique. This was easily done through a system of filters: media outlets sourcing their assumptions about flying saucers from contacts in the Pentagon and from major academic institutions. If any “pro” UFO scientists or prominent individuals were courageous enough to speak out, “flak” groups could conveniently discredit the parties through major media channels.
CIA contacts have been associated with the fate of the National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena (NICAP). Donald Keyhoe, a well known UFO author, ran the organization from the 1950s through the end of the 1960s. Along the way, a person by the name of Colonel Joseph Bryan approached Keyhoe, and requested copies of sighting reports. Keyhoe was suspicious of Bryan at the time, but later relented after Bryan expressed pro-UFO sentiments, and put Bryan on NICAP’s board. By the 1960’s, NICAP had developed a reputation of having government connected people on its board such as former CIA director and alleged MJ-12 member Rear Admiral Roscoe Hillenkoetter. Bryan’s background led to suspicion among UFO historians.19
Colonel Joseph Bryan III came from an upper crust family in Virginia, served with distinction in World War II, and did a stint in the CIA’s Office of Policy Coordination, psychological warfare office from 1949 to 1953. He served in all three branches of the military (Army, Navy, Air Force) and was promoted to colonel in the Air Force Reserve. Bryan was a writer and a journalist in the 1950’s and authored a number of books and articles. He was on the NICAP board during the ‘60s as NICAP declined under Keyhoe’s leadership. Keyhoe’s incompetence led to his ouster from his position in December 1969. The sequence of the Condon report findings, along with the Air Force’s exit from the public UFO scene presented an interesting coincidence with the termination of Keyhoe’s tenure and subsequent decline of NICAP.20,21,22
By the early 1990s the MJ-12 controversy was in full swing and Jacques Vallee published Revelations – Alien Contact and Human Deception. The book is a long argument for what Vallee terms “Deception Theory”, being a sequence of odd instances giving the impression of alien contact while ultimately making no logical sense.These instances included the MJ-12 milieu, along with the outlandish claims of John Lear, Bill Cooper and Robert Lazar. As examples of his theory, Vallee detailed the Cergy-Pontoise affair in France, the UMMO hoax in western Europe, the Rendlesham Forest USAF incident, and the Teesdale and APEN hoaxes in Britain. Combined with the MJ-12 shenanigans, Vallee theorizes the UFO world is being manipulated by government psychological warfare and deception experts for unknown reasons.23
This author reviewed all of the documents linked on the majesticdocuments.com website (majesticdocuments.com) as well as his own copy of the “Carter Briefing Document”. Of these, ten items were found having direct or indirect references to psychological warfare or strategic deception. Here are several examples:
In Twining’s “White Hot Report” from September 1947, it is suggested:
“we should make a preempted use of these objects for the purpose of psychological warfare once the true nature of these objects are known and understood.”
The Majestic Twelve Project, Annual Report states under Annex B:
“MAJCOM-1 with the assistance of the Panel persuades the president to establish the Psychological Strategy Board on 4 April 1951.”
The alleged “Majestic Twelve Project, Annual Report” in 1952 goes into some detail under “Government Policy of Control and Denial:
One of the most difficult aspects of controlling the perception in the public’s mind of government attempts of denial and ignorance – is actual control of the press. Until a clear intent is established with diplomatic relations firmly in hand, it is the recommendation of the President’s Special Panel with concurrence from MAJESTIC TWELVE, that a policy of strict denial of the events surfacing from Roswell N.M., and any other incident of such caliber, be enforced. A inter-active program of controlled releases to the media, in such fashion to discredit any civilian investigation, be instituted in accordance with the provisions of the National Security Act.
Also from the majesticdocuments.com website we have the “S-Aircraft Drawing and Memo by Thomas Cantwheel” received in 1996 by Timothy Cooper:
Efforts to conceal the true nature of flight operations were successful in that the AF devised a cover intelligence project called Blue Book. Project Blue Book, as a cover project, was controlled by the CIA to protect AF test flight operations from speculation by the public, and convince the Soviets that USAF had no aircraft capable of flight characteristics and maneuvers as observed and reported to Blue Book and the USAF UFO program. In 1958, Project UFO and Moon Dust were activated when USA Interplanetary Phenomenon unit operation ceased and CIC responsibility for UFO security was transferred to US AFOSI.
(Please see Appendix 2 for a list of MJ-12 documents mentioning psychological warfare).
Several references to unmanned aerial vehicles mimicking UFOs are made at several points in Vallee’s Revelations. These claims link with assertions by William Moore and Richard Doty.24,25. According to Vallee, these types of craft can serve as military reconnaissance drones.26 If combined with mind altering effects such as microwave radiation, observers can be left with confusion and memory lapses, with impressions of UFO experiences. In other words, some alleged UFO incidents may have been staged. The reasons for such incidents were obscure. (Vallee provides these hints without giving specific references or supporting material.)
Vallee supports his “Strategic Deception” theory by noting Britain and the United States extensively employed deceptive strategies and tactics during World War II, and have presumably carried such techniques forward. The capabilities of modern technologies such as radio, microwaves, drugs, and aircraft provide the means to create deceptions playing on the public’s mind. One possibility is some “UFOs” might be attempts by governments to affect public perceptions for opaque reasons. Another is a private group (possibly international) could be doing so. Occult groups are surreptitiously employed in espionage or counterintelligence efforts27, and such activities may in turn overlap with UFO contactee groups and even civilian UFO study groups.28,29
The notion some UFO sightings and experiences are artificial has been around since the modern UFO era began in 1947. Leon Davidson plainly implicated the CIA created UFO radar returns in his 1960 article ECM+CIA=UFO – or how to cause a radar sighting.30 Jacques Vallee in Messengers of Deceptionexplored flying saucer cults. According to Vallee, UFO cults are basically religious in nature – they address gaps between declining conventional religious beliefs and the answers to life’s questions science does not supply. He speculates UFOs are a form of media affecting peoples’ perception and outlook on reality, while not necessarily being of extraterrestrial origin. Nevertheless, UFO contactees look to friendly spacemen to solve humankind’s problems and to create utopian conditions on Earth. Vallee saw the growth and development of UFO religious sects as dangerous because they could be subject to manipulation by third parties.
The UFO community has always had barriers in obtaining awareness and credibility with the “establishment”. These hurdles are outlined in Herman and Chomsky’s Manufacturing Consent – The Political Economy of the Mass Media. Their book details the framework of a system of “filters” by which most, if not all national priorities are communicated.31,32
So, we can view the sequence of communications regarding UFOs since World War II in terms of propaganda. The government in one form or another has a track record of making official pronouncements and providing reports on UFOs. Since the sources for these reports are known, they can plainly be considered white propaganda (with perhaps a few shades of grey). (Please see Appendix 3 for a list of these publications).
The MJ-12 documents however, should be regarded as black propaganda. Most all of them have no provenance, and many include misinformation. To this day, we do not know the motivations or purposes for these documents.
Carrion, J. (2009). Russian Espionage and UFOs. 7th Annual UFO Crash Retrieval Conference Proceedings. p. 175 Broomfield, CO: Wood & Wood Enterprises.
7
Carrion, Anachronism, op. cit. Chapters 10 through 31. See also Aldrich, J. (2000). The Ghost Rocket File: Documents and News Articles Concerning Anomalous Objects Seen Over Scandinavia in 1946. Mount Rainier, MD: Fund For UFO Research. Documents can also be viewed at keepandshare.com under James Carrion.
8
Ibid. p. 2. Anachronism incorporates and extends Carrion’s previous work in The Rosetta Deception.
Ibid. p. 423. This material correlates with Bernstein, C. (1977). The CIA and the Media – How America’s Most Powerful News Media Worked Hand in Glove with the Central Intelligence Agency and Why The Church Committee Covered It Up. (Rolling Stone article of October 20, 1977). Retrieved from: http://www.carlbernstein.com/magazine_cia_and_media.php
Sparks, B.(2018). Robertson Panel. In J. Clark (Ed.), The UFO Encyclopedia: The Phenomenon From the Beginning (3rd ed. Vol. 2), p.1016. Detroit, MI: Omnigraphics
Sparks, op. cit. p. 1016. Sparks debunks the panel’s concern that reporting channels could be jammed in a national security situation.
17
Sparks, Ibid. pp. 1013-1014
18
Sparks, B.(2018). Satellite Tracking of UFOs. Clark, J. (Ed.), The UFO Encyclopedia: The Phenomenon From the Beginning (3rd ed. Vol. 2.p.1032). Detroit, MI: Omnigraphics. Unfortunately, Sparks’ startling claim concerning Samford’s intentions includes no references or other documentation.
19
Dolan, R. (2002). UFOs and the National Security State – Chronology of a Cover-Up 1941-1973 (Revised Edition). Charlottesville, VA: Hampton Roads Publishing Company, Inc. pp. 364-365.
Vallee, J. (1991). Revelations – Alien Contact and Human Deception. NY NY: Ballantine Books. Retrieved from: https://archive.org/details/revelationsalien00vall/page/88/mode/2up Vallee on p. 87 also quotes from Lewin, L. (1967). Report From Iron Mountain On The Possibility and Desirability of Peace. New York, NY: Dell Publishing Co. Inc. p.51. Iron Mountain is widely recognized as a hoax and as a spoof on the turgid, McNamaresque government reporting style.
24
Moore, W. (1989). UFOs and the Government, Part 3. Focus. Volume 4 (New Series), Issues 10-11-12. p.6. “… (according to information which has been provided to me by several different sources over the years) the government has had under development for some time now a disc-shaped, unmanned, reconnaissance drone, and has been conducting test flights of this object over the northwestern New Mexico, southern Colorado area (of which Dulce is a part).”
Vallee, J. (1979). Messengers of Deception- UFO Contacts and Cults. Berkeley, CA: And/Or Press. p. 205
28
Ibid, p. 69
29
Ibid, p.191
30
Davidson, L. (1960). ECM+CIA=UFO – Or How to Cause a Radar Sighting. Flying Saucer Review. March-April 1960. Vol. 6. No. 2. Retrieved from: http://www.ignaciodarnaude.com/ufologia/FSR,1960,Mar-Apr,V%206,N% 202.pdf (This is a reprint of Davidson’s original article). Davidson also mentions in passing that the CIA engages in psychological warfare.
Ibid. p. 20 Air Force public communications include “newspapers, Air Force Magazine, radio and TV (overseas), headquarters news releases, hometown news releases, news media interviews, news conference, media orientation flights, meetings with editorial boards and public speeches”.
APPENDIX 1 – PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE/STRATEGIC INFLUENCE TIMELINE 1939-2003 SOURCE: GOUGH,S. (2003). The Evolution of Strategic Influence. U.S. Army War College. Retrieved from: https://fas.org/irp/eprint/gough.pdf (TW interpolations are shown in bold).
DATE, EVENT, REMARKS
1939 US has no psychological warfare capability
06/00/1941 John McCloy (Assistant Secretary of War) forms Special Study Group within G-2. Evolves into the Psychological Warfare Branch (PWB),G-2
07/11/1941 Roosevelt establishes the Office of the Coordinator of Information (COI). Donovan in charge.
06/11/1942 Roosevelt creates Office of War Information (OWI) for Psychological Warfare and the OSS for intelligence and covert operations.
11/1942 General Eisenhower activates PWB at Allied Forces Headquarters North Africa (PWB/AFHQ)
12/1942 War Department Disbands Psychological Warfare Branch (PWB). JCS dissolves all psychological warfare committees. Army eliminates its PWB. JCS gives military theater commanders control of psychological warfare control in their respective areas.
11/1943 Army establishes Propaganda Branch in G-2.
02/1944 PWB/AFHQ expands to become Psychological Warfare Division, Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF)
Post 1945 OWI and OSS disbanded. Theatre military psychological warfare divisions becom Information Control Divisions (ICD)
12/1946 War Department/Army headquarters moves PWB from G-2 to the Policy Section, Plans & Operations Division
07/26/1947 Truman signs National Security Act
12/1947 National Security Council Memorandum (NSC) 4/4A signed. “Coordination of Foreign Information Measures”. Interagency Foreign Information Organization (IFIO) formed under the State Department
01/16/1948 Smith-Mundt Act passes. (Among other things), directs that pschological warfare programs …”shall not be disseminated within the United States”
06/18/1948 Truman signs NSC 10/2. Response to concerns and disagreements between DOD and State. Creates Office of Special Projects.
1949 Radio Free Europe
04/14/1950 Truman signs NSC 68 – Overt and covert economic, political, and psychological warfare. Important milestone in cold war strategy.
08/1950 IFIO chairman Edward Barrett suggests creating a National Psychological Strategy Board
Fall 1950 Korean War
Fall 1950 Army activates Psychological Warfare Division (PWD), G-3
01/1951 Office of the Chief of Psychological Warfare established.
Spring 1951 PWD becomes Office of the Chief of Psychological Warfare (OCPW). (Not of the G staff, rather has direct access to the Chief of Staff). Activities include the 1st Radio Broadcasting and Leaflet Group (1st RB&L)
04/04/1951 Truman creates Psychological Strategy Board. First director is Gordon Gray (alleged MJ-12 member).
10/21/1951 NSC 10/5 expands NSC 10/2 making CIA responsible for covert actions.
01/16/1952 State Department establishes International Information Administration (coordinates with PSB)
03/1952 Army establishes Psychological Warfare center at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina
04/1952 Department of Defense Directive C-5132 (Organization, Office of Psychological Policy)
1952 “Eisenhower campaign speech: “”Psychological operations are established instruments of national power””.”
12/1952 DOD Directive S-3140.1 – Expands policies and roles in psychological operations
(est) 02/1953 Eisenhower establishes President’s Committee on International Information Activities (PCIIA)
06/1953 PCIIA report published
09/02/1953 Eisenhower establishes Operations Coordinating Board (OCB) by Executive Order 10483
09/03/1953 Psychological Strategy Board abolished
01/1954 Eisenhower signs National Security Memorandum (affects foreign information in the context of the NSC). Rescinds NSC 59/1. Establishes U.S. Information Agency (USIA)
10/25/55 News Release – Air Force Releases Study on Unidentified Aerial Objects
02/25/1957 EO 10700 changes OCB from an independent agency to being under the National Security Council
1961 Psychological Warfare “Ice Age” through 1980. Kennedy administration emphasis on psychological strategies greatly reduced. Focus is on psychological operations within special forces.
02/1961 EO 10920 abolishes OCB (and 45 committees)
04/15/1961 National Security Action Memorandum (NSAM), concerns CIA “ownership” of Radio Free Europe.
07/14/1961 NSAM 61 directs State Department and USIA to counter Soviet “Peaceful Coexistence” propaganda
07/24/1961 NSAM 63 – State Department through the USIA to provide guidance to all US government owned radio/TV
01/18/1962 NSAM 124 – Establishes Counterinsurgency Special Group
03/1966 NSAM 341 – Gives Dept. of State the responsibility for overseas interdepartmental activities.
08/1966 Partial release of Robertson Panel report
1960s-1970s Vietnam War – Psychological operations are mainly tactical. Did not last past the war. Vietnam Psychological Operations Working Group (dormant for a year by 1967)
1968 U.S. Congress. House Committee on Science and Astronautics. Symposium on Unidentified Flying Objects.
01/1969Condon Committee Report Published
Nixon Era “NSDM 63 “”Psychological Warfare Operations Against Vietnamese Communists”””
Early 1970s Formation of Joint Staff ad hoc committees. Psychological Operations in Critical Areas Watch Committee (POCA), employing interagency working group on psychological operations in critical areas.
Mid 1970s Army had only one psychological operations group. It was undermined and had poor equipment.
1976 Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty are merged
Carter Era Policy Review Committee. Special Coordinating Committee
12/04/1981 EO 12333 – Concerns Latin America
07/15/1982 National Security Decision Directive (NSDD) 45. International broadcasting program.
01/04/1983 NSDD 77 – Special Planning Group (SPG)
03/06/1984 NSDD 130 – Reemphasizes and clarifies Reagan policy on Strategic Influence. (this one and the above two set the cornerstone of Reagan Strategic Influence.)
07/26/1984 “DOD Directive S-3321.1 “”Overt Psyop Conducted By Military Services In Peacetime””. (This directive is still valid and is used daily as the policy guidance form peacetime psyop)”
12/1984Initial MJ-12 Documents Received
1984/1985 National Endowment for Democracy established.
1985 DOD creates Psychological Operations (Psyop) Master Plan. Watershed document. Creates Psyop Directorate. Creates Joint Psyop Center (JPOC) (but it is not implemented.
03/28/1990 Bush I signs National Security Review (NSR) 24 – Examination of broadcasting activities.
Gulf War I ““Command and Control Warfare”” (C2W). 1) Psyop, 2) Electronic Warfare, 3) Deception, 4) Operation Security, 5) Physical Destruction”
09/1990 NSDD 77 superseded by NSD 51. Outlines four basic mission in US (foreign) broadcasting. Genesis of Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG)
1995 The Roswell Report: Fact versus Fiction in the New Mexico Desert
1990s – SOM1-01 Manual and Timothy Cooper MJ-12 Documents Received
07/1995 GAO Report – Results of a Search for Records Concerning the 1947 Crash Near Roswell, New Mexico.
1997 The Roswell Report: Case Closed.
1998 Congress passes Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act. (Funds for the Dept. of State are reduced).
04/30/1999 Clinton establishes a policy on Strategic Influence. Presidential Decision Directive/NSC 68. Creates International Public Information (IPI) Core Group (IPICG)
2001 Bush II issues National Security Policy Directive (NSPD) 1. Restructures the NSC system. Abolishes Clinton’s Interagency Working Groups (IWG). Establishes Policy Coordination Committees (PCC).
2001 Office of Secretary of Defense (OSD) establishes Office of Strategic Influence (OSI). Purpose: to fill gaps between Bush PCC’s and OGC.
Fall 2001 JSS establishes Information Operations Task Force (IOTF). (Originally titled Information Operations Resource Center (IORC).
Early 2002 “Rumsfeld publishes Defense Planning Guidance (DPG). Develops the “”Information Operations Roadmap””.”
03/2002 US Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) launches Radio Sawa (Arabic news and entertainment) radiosawa.com
07/2002 IOTF is disbanded. (Psyop division personnel are returned to normal duties due to concerns over violation of the Smith-Mundt Act. Only one active duty organization remains – the 4th Psychological Operations Group (4th POG)
08/2002 Congressman Henry Hyde sponsors and Congress approves money for cultural and information programs (mainly for Muslim countries).
08/2002 Bush II creates Office of Global Communications (OGC)
01/2003 EO 13283 establishes OCG within the Whitehouse office. Includes (PCC) Counter Terrorism Information Strategy (CTIS); Strategic Communications (SC)
2007 CIA’s Role In The Study of UFOs, 1947-1990, Central Intelligence Agency, CIA
APPENDIX 2 – MJ-12 DOCUMENTS MENTIONING PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE AND DECEPTION
ITEM
SOURCE
QUOTES AND COMMENTS
George C. Marshall to Franklin D. Roosevelt, 5 March 1942
60-61 There is a good chance that the Russians may try to make use of the flying saucer scare by public new media and diplomatic means of a technological breakthrough in aircraft and missile development. We feel that such a disclosure would most certainly cause great embarressment (sic) to our elected officers and to the military, not to mention the panic felt by the citizenry. To counter such a threat, it is recommended that a counterintelligence program be drawn up and held in abeyance if at such a time the situation should present itself. It might be suggested that we should make a preempted use of these objects for the purpose of psychological warfare once the true nature of these objects are known and understood.
Majestic Twelve Project, Purpose and Table of Contents, Summer 1952?
(Bottom of 2nd page (it is cut off)…”ued on Psy-Op development for….P. 7 Government Policy of Control and Denial – One of the most difficult aspects of controlling the perception in the public’s mind of government attempts of denial and ignorance – is actual control of the press. Until a clear intent is established with diplomatic relations firmly in hand, it is the recommendation of the President’s Special Panel with concurrence from MAJESTIC TWELVE, that a policy of strict denial of the events surfacing from Roswell N.M., and any other incident of such caliber, be enforced. A inter-active program of controlled releases to the media, in such fashion to discredit any civilian investigation, be instituted in accordance with the provisions of the National Security Act.P.10, Annex B, Item 10) – MAJCOM-1 with the assistance of the Panel persuades the president to establish the Psychological Strategy Board on 4 April 1951.
Future psychological warfare plans are in the making for more sophisticated vehicles whose characteristics come very close to phenomena collected by Air Force and NSA elements authorized for operations in the area of intelligence.
Source S-1 to Cooper: “Burned Memo” Cover Letter (Transmitted in 1999)
Directive Regarding PSYOPPSYOP units within the existing structure are hereby placed in condition GREEN until such time they are told to stand down. Units designated for GREEN are authorized to interrogate and detain any and all targets. (Retype from Wood, R. MAJIC Eyes Only)
S-Aircraft Drawing and Memo by Thomas Cantwheel, 30 January 1996
Efforts to conceal the true nature of flight operations were successful in that the AF devised a cover intelligence project called Blue Book. Project Blue Book, as a cover project, was controlled by the CIA to protect AF test flight operations from speculation by the public, and convince the Soviets that USAF had no aircraft capable of flight characteristics and maneuvers as observed and reported to Blue Book and the USAF UFO program. In 1958, Project UFO and Moon Dust were activated when USA Interplanetary Phenomenon unit operation ceased and CIC responsibility for UFO security was transferred to US AFOSI.
Vernon Bowen Manuscript
Whitmore Private Collection
(Handwritten Page – Notes on Propaganda)
APPENDIX 3 – U.S. OFFICIAL COMMUNICATIONS REGARDING UFOs
ITEM
YEAR RELEASED
News Release – Air Force Releases Study on Unidentified Aerial Objects. (Source: Davidson, L. (1966). Flying Saucers: An Analysis of the Air Force Project Blue Book Special Report No. 14. White Plains, NY: Ramsey-Wallace Corporation)
1955
Durant, F. (1953). Report of Meetings of Scientific Advisory Panel on Unidentified Flying Objects. (Central Intelligence Agency, Office of Scientific Intelligence). (Partial releases – Source: Sparks, B.(2018). Robertson Panel. In J. Clark (Ed.), The UFO Encyclopedia: The Phenomenon From the Beginning (3rd ed. Vol. 2), p.1017. Detroit, MI: Omnigraphics)
1958, 1966
U.S. Congress. House Committee on Science and Astronautics. Symposium on Unidentified Flying Objects.
1968
Gillmor, D. ed. Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects. (Air Force Contracted Study). (“Condon Report”).
1969
Weaver, Colonel Richard L.; McAndrew, 1st Lt. James. The Roswell Report: Fact versus Fiction in the New Mexico Desert. Washington DC: Headquarters United States Air Force
1995
Report to the Honorable Steven H. Schiff, House of Representatives: Results of a Search for Records Concerning the 1947 Crash Near Roswell, New Mexico. Washington, DC: General Accounting Office.
1995
McAndrew, Captain James. The Roswell Report: Case Closed. Washington DC: Headquarters United States Air Force.
1997
Gerald K. Haines, CIA’s Role In The Study of UFOs, 1947-1990, Central Intelligence Agency, CIA.
2007
Tom Whitmore acknowledges James Carrion for his exhaustive research in The Rosetta Deception, Anachronism and The Roswell Deception; and Jack Brewer for his research on Colonel Joseph Bryan III.
Please see Tom Whitmore’s other papers, MJ-12, The Counterintelligence Angle, and Before MJ-12 in this blog.
Copyright 2021, Thomas M. Whitmore, All Rights Reserved.
Vallee, Forbidden Science – Volume Three – Journals 1980-1989 – On the Trail of Hidden Truths. to p.72 (of 513).
Clark, UFO Encyclopedia, (3rd Edition) Vol. 2 to p.1226 (of 1462). Topics: UMMO Hoax; Unarius Academy of Science; UNICAT Project; Unidentified Flying Objects; United Nations and UFOs; Utah Film; Valensole CE-2/CE-3; Valentich Disappearance; Vallee, Jacques Francis (1939 – ); Van Meter Monster; Van Tassel, George W. (1910-1978); Vargen Grande Case; Varginha Contact Incident.
Progress on Research Paper (“MJ-12: Psychological Warfare and Strategic Deception”):
Draft paper has been completed (includes notes and appendices) and is under review.
New Project “AFOSI” (Air Force Office of Special Investigations):
Beginning literature search
Sparks reference to AFOSI regs
Doty personnel file
AFOSI website
Other military investigative services
Walter bosley book (on file)
Walter bosley interview
Other AFOSI stories
From A Dark Sky (book)
General Internet Search on USAF Special Operations
AFOSI Unit Histories
Richelson book (on file)
Tom Whitmore welcomes any constructive suggestions on researching this topic. He can be contacted at twhitmore87@gmail.com
