This is an excellent article that shows us how the UFO
extraterrestrial mythology was created by science fiction books, films and TV
serials.
The commentary of Popular Mechanics follows step by step
the invention of the alien visitors and the fiction’s impact in the popular
culture
“UFO culture began in the late 40's, when a pilot's account of a midair encounter with mysterious aircraft triggered similar reports across the United States.(Kenneth Arnold sighting. 1947) Authors, movie producers and a few hack journalists were quick to respond. By the late 1950s, pop culture was completely preoccupied with aliens, and the clichés it created then have been repeated and reinvented ever since. Here are the books, TV shows and movies that helped create the mythology of UFOs in America. They aren't the best, or the worst, but the ones that made the most impact on the prevailing American superstition of our time.”
Science Fiction and pop culture created not only the
different tipes of extraterrestrials but also the behavior of the “cosmic
visitors”.
“The UFO Phenomenon, was a
deft, kid-friendly synopsis of the more prominent myths. With relatively few
sightings or abduction stories in the news, this is where a new generation
learned of the insidious "men in black," the monstrous Greys the
photos and eyewitness accounts of UFOs that the U.S. Air Force's Project Blue
Book could never explain away.”
The media sensationalism did the rest. The meme was created becoming
a more or less prosperous and spectacular industry that in my personal view not
only was inoffensive for the authorities but in some cases even useful. The
cover-up myth was in fact a protection for the UFO mythology since the absolute
lack of evidences was justified by the new meme of the big conspiracy.
Read more: The 10 Most Influential UFO-Inspired Books, Movies and TV Shows - Popular Mechanics
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