War of the Worlds caused quite a bit of controversy in its day, but it turned out to be just a radio drama... or was it?It has been noted that CBS and the Rockefeller Foundation had been conducting crowd psychology research at the same time. The conspiracy theory says they may have played a roll in the broadcast. Some even go so far as to suggest that War of the Worlds was a test in psychological warfare for the purposes of studying panic.
Outlandish? Maybe. But Orson Welles himself lent a bit of credence to the theory in the trailer of his final major film, F for Fake. Whether seriously or in jest, Welles says:
"Ladies and Gentlemen, suppose I come right out with it and admit to you now that my old martian hoax on the radio was, well, not exactly... a hoax. That there were secret sponsors of that broadcast who were, in fact, some rather influential beings. [...] You still think it's a joke? Good. That's the way we want you to feel about it... for now."I'm not sure I buy it, but conspiracy theories are certainly curious.
Listen to the full broadcast here.
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