Mar 10, 2024
Written By [Christopher Sharp](https://www.liberationtimes.com/?author=610434e320e3e945538177b1)
Written by [Christopher Sharp](https://twitter.com/ChrisUKSharp) \- 10 March 2024
“And after a thorough review, the Central Intelligence Agency has found no verifiable evidence of any alleged illegal human experiments program undertaken by the agency.”
In an alternate universe where the CIA was asked to investigate itself following allegations relating to the MKULTRA program, history may have played out differently.
Crimes were only uncovered through the courageous efforts of investigative journalists and democratic representatives.
The courage of a few good representatives remains strong today.
But sadly, the same cannot be said for journalism.
How The Media Advanced The Pentagon’s UAP Narrative With Zero Scrutiny
These days, publications like the [New York Times are more inclined to do the CIA’s bidding in exchange for access](https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/25/world/europe/cia-ukraine-intelligence-russia-war.html), rather than independently scrutinizing the powerful.
True investigative journalism in old media is dead.
On 6 March 2024, hand-picked friendly journalists sold their souls to the Department of Defense (DoD) by participating in a secretive [press briefing](https://www.defense.gov/News/Transcripts/Transcript/Article/3702219/media-engagement-with-acting-aaro-director-tim-phillips-on-the-historical-recor/) and agreeing to a restrictive embargo.
The excessive secrecy and coordination were reminiscent of a military operation.
The reason? Because the DoD claims it has conducted a ‘thorough’ investigation into allegations of illegal activities concerning Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP).
The outcome? The DoD, as detailed in a new [report](https://media.defense.gov/2024/Mar/08/2003409233/-1/-1/0/DOPSR-CLEARED-508-COMPLIANT-HRRV1-08-MAR-2024-FINAL.PDF), cleared itself and the intelligence community of any wrongdoing or cover-ups.
Journalists from renowned publications such as the New York Times and the Washington Post, known for their history of exposing scandals like MKULTRA and the Pentagon Papers, eagerly broadcasted the DoD’s propaganda, a departure from their traditional role of holding the powerful to account.
Photo by [Jakayla Toney](https://unsplash.com/@jakaylatoney?utm_content=creditCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=unsplash) on [Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/photos/grayscale-photo-of-city-buildings-APm4g7xKEcI?utm_content=creditCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=unsplash)
For them, the DoD, is seen as an authoritative, perhaps trustworthy source.
– The same DoD which [misled](https://theintercept.com/2023/09/08/africa-air-base-us-military/) Congress about U.S. bases in Africa
– The same DoD which [misled](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/nov/05/iraq-weapons-mass-destruction-america-misled-britain-gordon-brown) the American public and allies over the case for the Iraqi invasion
– The same DoD which [misled](https://www.courthousenews.com/pentagon-misled-congress-on-military-sex-assaults/) Congress on the topic of military sex assaults
– The same DoD which has [failed](https://www.reuters.com/world/us/pentagon-fails-audit-sixth-year-row-2023-11-16/) six audits in a row.
When it comes to UAP, military witnesses have spoken out about unknown craft with unexplainable characteristics, representative of breakthrough technologies.
Highly cleared whistleblowers with nothing to gain have sacrificed their careers to expose illegal programs which involve retrieval and reverse engineering of non-human materials and biologics.
Allegations from former senior intelligence official David Grusch were [deemed credible and urgent](https://thedebrief.org/intelligence-officials-say-u-s-has-retrieved-non-human-craft/) by the Intelligence Community’s Inspector General (ICIG).
Despite the DoD’s questionable track record and the credibility of the allegations and witness accounts, mainstream journalists threw whistleblowers and witnesses under the bus.
Instead, journalists blindly followed the DoD’s narrative.
Because of the strict embargo imposed on journalists regarding the briefing and report, UAP advocates and whistleblowers were deprived of the opportunity to respond. Publications hurriedly released the DoD’s conclusions once the embargo was lifted.
Journalists who were not initially invited to Wednesday’s briefing with Tim Phillips, the acting director of the DoD’s UAP office, also known as the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), were later granted the chance to preview the report before its release.
Liberation Times opted not to engage with the DoD on ethical grounds.
The AARO has always committed to conducting its work with transparency – it was a key pillar for its creation. However, its choice to issue a report that exonerates the DoD through overly controlling press tactics starkly contradicts any ideals of transparency or balance.
That’s no surprise though.
Transparency takes a backseat when it comes to serving the DoD’s best interests, particularly in cases involving potential illegal activities.
The AARO’s Flawed Investigation
The investigative approach adopted by the AARO entailed questioning individuals suspected of involvement in unauthorized activities, particularly relating to the recovery and reverse engineering of non-human materials.
The AARO accepted these individuals’ denials at face value.
It should be noted that such individuals were requested to sign memorandums for the record attesting to the truthfulness of their statements (which cannot be viewed for scrutiny), contrasted with Dave Grusch’s public testimony under oath.
Unfairly, the words of the suspects were given greater weight than the whistleblowers, whose allegations corroborate those of Dave Grusch.
Former senior intelligence officer, David Grusch
At the press briefing, Phillips said the AARO was never denied access to any facility, but the question has always been, did they even attempt to look in every facility?
The DoD had no incentive to implicate itself and conveniently found the answers it sought.
Also, at the press briefing, Phillips could not confirm whether the AARO had resolved any UAP cases with “transmedium” or shape-shifting objects, or breakthrough technologies generated by the U.S., China or Russia.
He [told reporters](https://defensescoop.com/2024/03/08/embargo-10a-friday-dod-developing-gremlin-capability-to-help-personnel-collect-real-time-uap-data/): “As far as other advanced technologies — there’s been some cases, but we can’t discuss that here.”
That contradicts a previous line from the AARO’s spokesperson Susan Gough, who has worked for the DoD for over 15 years. [As reported in November 2023](https://www.liberationtimes.com/home/critical-concerns-arise-over-the-us-governments-ufo-office-amid-uncertainty-surrounding-its-directors-future), Gough told Liberation Times that a transmedium case had been resolved:
“Previously reported transmedium object has been resolved and the case details are being prepared for public release in the near future.”
Liberation Times understands from sources that the report authored by the AARO’s former Director, Dr. Sean Kirkpatrick, who now serves as its official consultant, may have underwent revision to remove emotionally c
*[Read full article at Liberation Times]*