Leslie Kean has written an unusual book on an unusual subject: Unidentified flying objects. But this Halloween weekend, Kean would like you to get any pictures of little green men you might have out of your mind.
Released this August, UFOs: Generals, Pilots and Government Officials Go on the Record collects statements from an unexpected array of people—senior officers in militaries around the world, a former governor of Arizona, a former senior Federal Aviation Administration manager—who tell their first hand accounts of witnessing or investigating something that their best efforts could not explain.
Kean describes herself as an investigative journalist. In the mid-nineties, she transitioned from being an activist on Burmese democracy and human rights issues to writing about the country. Her work on the topic, most of it co-written with Dennis Bernstein, was published in many major newspapers and magazines. She later worked as a reporter and producer for Flashpoints, a radio program on KPFA, Berkeley’s Pacifica station.
UFOs was blurbed as a “fine piece of journalism” by NewsHour science correspondent Miles O’Brien, and features an introduction by John Podesta, the former Clinton chief of staff, who supported a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit that Kean helped successfully settled against NASA for records related to a contested 1965 incident outside of Pittsburgh. Kean (pronounced “cane”—Tom Kean, the former New Jersey governor and 9-11 Commission co-chair, is her uncle) spoke with CJR by phone.
What are the particular challenges to covering this subject as a journalist?
The biggest one is ridicule. A lot of that ridicule is deserved, because of the way that people interested in this carry on about it, and the kinds of information they put out as being valid. It’s just a cesspool.
When I first took the subject on, I was really embarrassed. You go to a party and people ask you what you do, and when you say you’re a journalist you’re just hoping nobody asks you what subject you focus on. You don’t want to tell because people laugh.
That was really an issue for years and years, but it got easier. I wrote a series of articles that were published in mainstream places, and I wouldn’t get any ridicule, because I think I was handling it in a way that most people don’t.
The other thing is that the subject is so inconclusive and nebulous. I was able to pull together a lot of solid information and government documents and high level sources for the book, but its still is extremely difficult to get a definitive conclusion to this problem. You want to be able to wrap up something and finalize it and have an answer and that doesn’t happen here.
When you just say the word UFO to people, they come with their own ideas. So what I’d like to ask is what aren’t you claiming in this book?
People assume UFOs are, one, a question of belief and, two, the reason they’re a question of belief is because the term means alien spacecraft. Neither of those things are accurate. It was very important to me to make it clear from the beginning that nobody is claiming to know what the UFOs are.
When Joe Blow calls up and sees a light in the sky, it can be explained, like, probably every time. But in these very well investigated cases—and there aren’t that many—they seem to have been able to eliminate every possible explanation that we know of. If you have something where you have a huge amount of information and data about, for which there should be an explanation, but there isn’t, it becomes a dilemma. You get these generals saying that, well, maybe they’re extraterrestrial. They’re never going to say that—they would never go close to that—unless there was a real reason for it.
This is a real curiosity and there have been lots of people who have directly been involved who believe that it needs more investigation and that it’s very serious and very important. I don’t want to go further than that.
One of the things I thought was most fascinating in the book was the different ways that governments all over the world handle this question, especially the French.
Back in the mid ’70s the French set up a small government agency within their equivalent of NASA, specifically tasked with investigating these incidents. It still exists today. When something happens, there are people they can call in to assist from various specialties, depending on what’s needed. So say that there’s a case where something lands—they might need a soils expert to look at samples, they might need a plant pathologist to look at decay or burning of plants. They might need a psychologist to interview a witness to determine if this witness is hallucinating or if he is of sound mind.
They have a steering committee that meets three or four times a year to go over the data and analyze cases. In the process of that they have accumulated a lot of very interesting data; a lot of the most interesting stuff has to do with physical evidence.
France is unique in its scientific emphasis and the scientific approach. They’re devoted to doing this purely for research’s sake. In other countries—Peru, Chile, and Uruguay—these agencies are set up in the military or air force and work from an aviation safety or military point of view. The UK Ministry of Defense had a big one, but they closed it down in 2008 because they were so overwhelmed with Freedom of Information requests.
It is not just ridicule that you have to put up with when you talk about UFOs. There are also forces in this country do not want UFOs talked about in a sensible way. These forces spend their time suppressing the serious inquiry and encouraging the bizarre in order to trivialize the subject. It is the US military/intelligence community that does not want the truth about advanced aliens visiting from outer space to be revealed, since that would undermine US military and economic dominance of the world. This elaborate coverup has been going on for almost 60 years. See ufocoverup.org for more info
Posted by David on Sun 31 Oct 2010 at 04:18 PM
It leaves one wondering!
What's more ridiculous?
The cover up or 60 years
Posted by joe hachey on Sun 31 Oct 2010 at 05:32 PM
It really doesn't matter if the US plays a role in disclosure, we know that the USA wont, and we know that people do not understand the immense spiritual nature of contact. That is why contact is now being forced, before this year is out the world will know they are not alone, it will be done in a way that can not be denied, it has already started with small sightings, the next phase is that all crafts will turn up all at once. Enjoy the show, it is going to be spectacular, and it has to now play out this way because of the cover up being forced on the world by some governments and religious organizations.
Posted by Richard on Mon 1 Nov 2010 at 02:58 AM
I want to thank Leslie Kean for taking this issue seriously. I also want to thank CJR for taking Leslie Kean seriously in this interview.
I, like Ms. Kean, am frustrated by the fact that there is indeed a "cesspool" of information regarding this topic on the internet which is quite frustrating to attempt to wade through. On the other hand, this "cesspool" exists in part because major media outlets persist in treating this topic, on the whole, with an almost utter lack of interest and also with derision. I am not an uncritical believer, but I will say this: If you read, watch, and study serious evidence, famous incidents, and all-too-obscure yet utterly fascinating and high-quality reports (military, pilot, radar, multiple-person sightings), it is hard to walk away from such reports without major cracks in the walls of your own skepticism.Posted by scoot on Mon 1 Nov 2010 at 03:10 AM
"One of the things I thought was most fascinating in the book was the different ways that governments all over the world handle this question, especially the French".
A student from Columbia wrote this sentence? Ouch!
Please purchase "The Elements of Style" Strunk and White
"When you just say the word UFO to people, they come with their own ideas. So what I’d like to ask is what aren’t you claiming in this book"?
Owwww.
Posted by Mike on Mon 1 Nov 2010 at 07:47 AM
Certain terrestrial agencies have used movies, tv, and the media to make the subject of UFOs laughable. The world has been programmed to see UFOs a certain way. The truth would devastate the majority of people, in my opinion.
Posted by Trevor on Mon 1 Nov 2010 at 12:05 PM
The conundrum here is that even if the U.S. sets up a program of study, do you think it will amount to anything? Was this not the government and military that set up the other 'study' programs? Blue Book, as an example, gave marching orders to Hynek and company that they were not going to find anyting, so they did not. It was not until a few years later that Hynek got disgusted with that attitude and changed his views. We are fed pablum on this subject, and told it is steak. There will be no real disclosure until the Senate and House come out and support this openly.
Posted by Tim on Mon 1 Nov 2010 at 12:21 PM
Leslie Kean has done more for the serious consideration of the UFO/ET issue than anyone since Greer's 2001 NPC Conference. I'm especially proud of the way she has handled herself during the many TV and Radio interviews she's done. She has almost single-handedly made it respectable to talk about UFO's again.
Posted by Rek on Mon 1 Nov 2010 at 01:02 PM
The investigations conducted by the french services SEPRA and its successor GEPAN have been very thoroughly and persuasively "debunked" (if that's the word) by the french Observatoire Zetetique in a book entitled "Les OVNIS du CNES, 30 Ans d'Études Officielles (1977-2007) published in French in December 2007 .
Posted by André Chambord on Mon 1 Nov 2010 at 01:07 PM
Leslie Kean's book is a breath of fresh air on the subject of UFOs.
And yes Mike, we all now know how smart you are.
And Andre, read the book yourself imstead of selectively dragging out a pompous debunker. And yes, "debunked" is the right word--a word that screams AGENDA!
Posted by Bob on Mon 1 Nov 2010 at 02:54 PM
I have just finished reading Leslie Kean's book. It is a real foundation piece for understanding the subject of UFOs. Unfortunately, I do not think that the USA will ever take part in any new agency or disclosure. The reason for this is that the US military and certain corporations are back engineering recovered spacecraft for profit and superiority and will never give that up.
Posted by Cam on Mon 1 Nov 2010 at 03:05 PM
I think this a fascinating subject. it warrants further investigation by the scientific community.But until we can "Weed" out the crack pots who start mixing strange religious concepts and claims they channel these aliens, then it will be a subject that is likened to to the hunt for Santa Claus or something of that nature.I think the 5% that can't be explained would be a great start and perhaps If something tangible is found by these scientist we might start to move forward on the subject as a serious valid discussion.
Posted by john on Mon 1 Nov 2010 at 09:11 PM
Does anyone think that were not up to our eyeballs in the secret study of these craft,some think along Vallee's lines that is that its
EDH ,others including myself suspect that ufos are being studied vigoursly only the public will not be privy to its findings.
Posted by Carol Nistri on Tue 2 Nov 2010 at 08:57 AM
It is a total waste of quality time trying to obtain records from government archives and beseeching officialdom to set up a special UFO study group. This equates with asking the enemy for their secrets. There is NO DOUBT whatever that UFO's exist. And "belief" has nothing to do with UFO's. "Awareness" is the word. The major points to deal with for all ufological history is .... "WHAT" and "WHY"? Get to the point of the matter! Do some personal research into the CE 4 & 5 events. These will provide some positive tangibles which Dr. Jacques Vallee did culminating his widespread research and who comes as a highly recommended procurer of data with which to make your own soul searching judgements.
Posted by Bob on Tue 2 Nov 2010 at 01:04 PM
Back when the first episode came out of "Star War: A New Hope", I was working for the federal gov't. in a secure location and we started discussing if it was possible for a varity of things could happen. The conversation drifted into UFO's and I stated that once you see one, you try to identify it as some kind of craft thus it becomes of unknown origin. Hillery Massy came in one day and stated to me that I would not be happy until one of the ufo'S CAME BACK AND ZAPPED ME OFF THIS PLANET. I agreed being 1977. General converstion can cost you your job. It did me and not Hillery, he brought up the subject, not me. Struck a nerve did I, Jedi?
Posted by Don on Tue 2 Nov 2010 at 02:26 PM
For decades, mainstream publications big and small have reported on sightings by professional pilots and air crews, military and professional, of apparently artificial flying objects performing incredible evolutions - instantaneous acceleration from standstill to thousands of mph, 90 degree turns at very high speed, etc. An example, and far from the most interesting one, can be found in astronaut Deke Slayton's autobiography excerpt at Google Books; another is the Naval History magazine article “Cosmic Curiosity” by Commander Edward P. Stafford, who was technical advisor for the movie Tora, Tora, Tora. And often these accounts are confirmed by concurrent ground radar. The most logical explanation is that these objects are intelligently controlled, and originating from outside our solar system.
Scientists of the highest standing have concluded that these objects are such interstellar vehicles. One such individual was Hermann Oberth, Werner von Braun's mentor, and one of the three great pioneers of modern rocketry (the other two being Goddard and Tsiolkovsky).
Nevertheless, it's pointless to seek further investigation or research, or to demand government disclosure. It's apparent that early on, with the modern version of this phenomenon, the U.S. government at least, upon receiving the reports, quickly realized that if this truly was technology, it would give the first finder an unassailable military superiority over everyone else; no more mutually assured destruction – rather, we win, you lose. This would make the matter one of national security. And with matters of national security, you tell everyone else, friends and foes, as little as possible about what you do know, what you don't know, and what you want to know. So of course the U.S. government took this in house, and never has disclosed, and never will disclose, anything it has discovered - if indeed there is anything to be discovered, and if in fact they have discovered anything. Probably there is some U.S. governmental unit, of which the public and most or all of the rest of the government are ignorant, that deals with the subject.
Take, for example, the official U.S. government UFO studies, like Blue Book. Do you really think that the government is going to address such a crucial issue by saying, "Hey everyone, we want to find out if flying saucers are real, so send in those stories and photographs!"? Of course not. They want to get as much of the information as they can, they want to get it before anyone else, and ideally, they don't want anyone else to get it at all. So they're going to investigate secretly, as assiduously as possible, and with every means at their disposal.
And by the way, anyone looking into Roswell objectively will conclude that the incident was what the authorities have always insisted – a government balloon. A secret (at the time; now declassified) government project, but that's all.
Posted by Roger Glass on Wed 3 Nov 2010 at 04:07 PM
Some years ago I worked for a huge, worlld wide company: a name known instantly to EVERYONE. I had a good friend that I worked with - a photographer - who was on the company airplane with the president and a number of senior executives. Flying hiigh in clear skies above the midwest every person on the plane - ten or twelve and the crew A L L saw a huge, shining disc fly near them for several minutes then speed quickly out of sight. (My friend had stored his equipment in the planes storage area.)
The pilot told all the executives they shouldn't say anything as the public wouldn't beleive it and they had no proof. Plus they were major executives in the company and they should just not discuss it as they would probably be hounded by it endlessly.
Posted by hwoodude on Wed 3 Nov 2010 at 05:29 PM
It's a well know "fact" in UFO lore that there was a meeting in 1954 at Edwards Air Force Base between U.S. Military Officials and ET's. Supposedly, there is a 16mm film of the event hidden somewhere in the bowels of the Pentagon.
From that meeting, a treaty was created. No one publicly admits to this, of course, but the essence of that meeting was the transfer of technology from the ET's to the U.S. Military. What we "gave" in return is the subject of great speculation.
However, the technology transfer, has enabled the U.S. Military to become the most sophisticated Armed Force on the Globe today. It is the reason that the U.S. Military can act and operate world-wide with total impunity.
I believe that this "truth" was shared between Ronald Reagan and Gorbachev and was the direct cause of the "Cold War" ending ... leading then to the collapse of the Soviet Union. In the face of what the U.S. had gained in the way of greatly advanced technology, continuing the U.S. / U.S.S.R. face-off became pointless.
Posted by J.H. "Grizzly Joe" Goldstein on Wed 3 Nov 2010 at 09:59 PM