Alternative 3: The 1977 Anglia mock-documentary that ignited fear, spurred conspiracies, and warned about disinformation

To the point

David Ambrose's Alternative 3 was a convincingly staged mock-documentary presented by Tim Brinton and scored by Brian Eno that fooled viewers into believing elites were vanishing as governments plotted a Mars-based survival plan, sparking a global conspiracy myth and a 1978 book by Leslie Watkins, and delivering a lasting warning that a cleverly crafted spoof can unleash real fear and misinformation, a lesson echoed in today’s age of deepfakes.

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‘Wow, it really worked!’: the 70s TV show that’s causing worldwide panic – 50 years later
theguardian.com

‘Wow, it really worked!’: the 70s TV show that’s causing worldwide panic – 50 years later

When UK mockumentary Alternative 3 tried to spook viewers that scientists were vanishing as part of a sinister space plot it succeeded. Today, the resulting conspiracy theory has even seen Trump’s government launch an investigation