Ufology’s dark side fused alien narratives with fears of secret government tyranny.
Evidence
By the early 1990s, therefore, at least some of the ufology literature had gone through several transformations. It had become intensely politicized. It insisted that powerful elements in the U.S. government were in continuing collaboration with an evil, alien race. And it claimed that in order to protect this information, the secret government was prepared to destroy American liberties. From 1986 to about 1990, the activities of Andrews, Lear, Cooper, and Valerian created a conspiracist form of UFO speculation, which Jerome Clark refers to as ufology’s “dark side.” — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy, 479
Categorization
- DEFINE: Defines Jerome Clark’s term ufology’s ‘dark side’ as politization-plus-evil-alien-collaboration.
- XREF: connects to: Antigovernment politics fused with UFO belief throughout the 1990s — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy: Apocalyptic…, 47; The hidden-government theme unexpectedly surged through UFO documents in the late 1980s — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy: Apocalyptic…, 438; Some UFO stories were deliberate deception planted to hide real secrecy. — Anna Merlan, Republic of Lies, 853 (+5 more)
Broader Connections
- New World Order fears merged with UFO conspiracy theories during the 1990s
#exemplifies(0.85) — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy, 481 - Some UFO stories were deliberate deception planted to hide real secrecy.
#expands(0.78) — Anna Merlan, Republic of Lies, 853 - Fear of invisible government manipulation drives false flag conspiracy theories.
#expands(0.78) — Anna Merlan, Republic of Lies, 351 - MJ-12 shifted ufologists from observing saucers to decoding government plots.
#responds-to(0.75) — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy, 443 - New World Order conspiracy ideas and UFO beliefs merged into two diametrically opposed syntheses
#complicates(0.75) — Michael Barkun, A Culture of Conspiracy, 420 - Twentieth-century American conspiracy theories shifted from alien out-groups to the government itself.
#expands(0.72) — Anna Merlan, Republic of Lies, 75