The New World Order conspiracy reached mainstream discourse through the UFO subculture.

Evidence

Thus, in the early 1990s New World Order conspiracy theories ceased to be beliefs that circulated only in an obscure political underground and began to penetrate some channels of mainstream discourse. In fact, however, the most dramatic New World Order penetration came not from Robertson, Buchanan, or coverage of the Oklahoma City bombers. Rather, it occurred earlier, in a segment of American culture that straddles the divide between “mainstream” and “deviant” and encompasses millions of people—the UFO community. Those who are interested in UFOs, believe in them, or claim to have been contacted or abducted by them form a subculture knitted together by lecture circuits, Web sites, magazines, and conventions. — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy, 402

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to how conspiracy theories bridge subcultural and mainstream channels, a theme across the book and adjacent to work on moral panics and rumor. — connects to: As the world grew more connected, conspiracy theories shifted from local to distant targets. — Anna Merlan, Republic of Lies, 72; UFO believers were an unexpected new audience drawn into New World Order conspiracy theory — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy: Apocalyptic…, 398; New World Order fears merged with UFO conspiracy theories during the 1990s — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy: Apocalyptic…, 481 (+3 more)

Broader Connections

• UFO belief pulled New World Order conspiracism out of political exile #corroborates (0.90) — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy, 1081
• New World Order fears merged with UFO conspiracy theories during the 1990s #corroborates (0.85) — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy, 481
• By the late 1980s some ufologists grafted New World Order conspiracy onto UFO belief #corroborates (0.80) — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy, 412
• Conspiracy theorists reinterpreted Bush’s new world order rhetoric as coded plotting #qualifies (0.75) — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy, 243