The Robertson Panel and the Cold War Framing of Unidentified Flying Objects

To the point

Howard Percy Robertson led a Cold War panel that reframed UFO sightings as a public-safety and national-security issue, debunked most cases, restricted open inquiry, promoted a media-driven narrative, created official reporting channels, and criminalized unsanctioned discussion, with Alvarez, Goudsmit, Berkner, Page, and Durant providing the technical heft (Hynek associated) while dissenters like Ruppelt and Fournet warned of genuine unknowns, signaling later tensions between secrecy and inquiry.