#UFODEBATELIVE

Neil deGrasse Tyson, Let’s Have a Real Debate about UFOs

This open letter challenges you to defend your skepticism about UFO/UAP reality in a public debate. Can you go beyond sound bites and punch lines to get to the heart of the matter?

An Open Letter to Neil deGrasse Tyson

I’ve been waiting a long time for you to stop dodging, dismissing and deflecting on the issue of UFOs/UAP and engage in some straight talk about what they really are and where they’re coming from. Maybe I’m just getting old and impatient, but the times are changing, the planet is burning and flooding at the same time, and I can’t wait any longer. But it’s not just me…

Every day I hear from people who are frustrated and fed up with stonewalling from government, indifference from the media, and a mocking attitude from a few influential science guys like yourself. That’s why I’m stepping into the breach and inviting you to air it out with me in some kind of public forum. A place where the questions have real journalistic edge and the answers go beyond fast soundbites.

I challenge you to a live, two-hour, in-person debate on the UFO/UAP topic sometime in 2022 — available to the public on TV, details to be mutually agreed upon.

There, I’ve gone and said it and, if you’re reading this, it means I actually pushed the “send” button. I know this may come across to some as little more than a publicity stunt. Not my goal but I’ll wear that if I have to because this subject deserves to be taken seriously. In fact, it demands it.

The Senate Intelligence Committee certainly seems to think so. But you don’t. And that’s always rubbed me the wrong way despite the fact that you seem like a basically nice guy. We’ve met in person a couple of times at the Emmy awards (I’m a past chairman of the TV Academy) and you couldn’t have been more charming, especially to my kids. And since they’re who will inherit a world that has withheld vital information from the public for far too long, this candid and no-holds-barred exchange of ideas I’m proposing is far overdue. We’ve had decades of denial and being kept in the dark. Let’s shed some cleansing light.

We can start with the government’s UAP Report released on June 25th, in which our intelligence community came right out and admitted these things are real. And that they have a stack of jaw dropping, military eyewitness cases to prove it, complete with sensor back-ups and a pile of digital videos worthy of a Netflix binge-watch.

The folks in Congress recently got a private screening and about forty minutes of classified footage reportedly left them “gobsmacked” by the experience. Since you have several more advanced degrees than I do, you probably already know what that word means. I had to look it up. It’s defined as “utterly astonished, astounded, completely shocked.” I really like this word and am adding it to my vocabulary. I can even use it in a sentence:

I am utterly gobsmacked by your recent behavior toward this subject.

The Invisible Constituency

Instead of giving serious attention to cases that have been analyzed by DoD experts and private researchers who spent years investigating some of them — then were viewed and taken seriously by high ranking politicians from both sides of the aisle — your responses on UAP consist of snide tweets and sarcastic putdowns. You treat people who even consider this idea as the equivalent of flat-Earthers. Whether your soundbite says you’ll believe it when an alien invites you to dinner or an abductee brings back an ashtray, or those Navy cases are probably equipment malfunctions, or witnesses should livestream their abductions — it comes across to many as distressingly tone-deaf.

That’s exactly what gives me the courage to issue this challenge — because it’s made on behalf of people who feel belittled by you. I’ll admit, I’m a little intimidated by the audacity of this because, unlike you, I recognize that many of those who I’d be speaking for are among our best and brightest. NASA employees, military and civilian pilots and radar operators, even people who have been trusted to watch our nation’s nuclear weapons. A huge number of them are even scientists just like you. But many others are just decent hard working people who don’t deserve to be treated as less intelligent or honest than anybody else.

Did you know that articles here on Medium and the related Tweets which mention your name on this subject get big traffic because people are just plain irritated with your shtick? The mere mention of your name draws a unified response from a bunch of folks who otherwise can’t agree on much of anything. But they do agree with stunning unanimity that they feel insulted by your casually dismissive attitude. This may sound harsh, Neil, but this is data and you always say you trust the data.

Caring about the Truth

And lest anyone think this is Science Versus Emotion, let’s remember that by training and experience, you’re a scientist and I’m a journalist, two professions that are supposed to care about what’s true and what’s not. In today’s world, where blatant lies about science gain traction, we should be on the same side in at least a few ways. Maybe there’s common ground that’s never been explored between your position and today’s increasingly public UFO/UAP mystery.

At the beginning of my career, when I first even considered the issue, it was to cover the news. And that demanded healthy skepticism. I was lucky enough to report on stories for CNN and PBS that included Space Shuttle launches and landings, the aerospace industry, and the Saturn and Mars missions. In fact, back then I had a friendly but spirited impromptu debate in the KCET parking lot after hosting a live network show with your Cosmos predecessor Carl Sagan on the subject of… wait for it… UFOs!

You and the late Dr. Sagan share more than just the connection to a popular TV series. You also stubbornly insist, as he did, that while the Universe may be — even must be — teeming with life, that it’s fanciful to think any such alien life form could even possibly be here given the vast distances. This left you both more excited about radio signals from space and microbes on Mars than about exotic technology being operated right here on Earth.

So here’s the deal, Neil… you don’t owe anything to me. But the country you entertain and nudge into respecting science needs you to quit snarking like a teen age wiseacre about this critical subject and say why you really think the way you do — in detail, in a legit setting. As one of our nation’s best minds, shouldn’t you be working with the rest of us to have that little crack of daylight from the UAP report lead to the door being thrown open wide?

You could be part of the solution, instead of, intentionally or not, helping keep the people of the planet you love ignorant of what could be the greatest scientific discovery in human history. So, accept my challenge to debate the reality of UFOs, and tell me why you think those millions of educated people who disagree with you are wrong. It seems like a decent thing to do, and we’re talking about one evening’s time.

What Have We Got to Lose?

Let’s throw down together and put on a show about important ideas, facts, and the nature of the Universe.

Whatever we do, however, let’s not make this just another Zoom but pick a physical space that has actual mass and volume (and chairs and tables). And instead of a podcast host, let’s go with a nationally recognized journalist (who has done enough homework to know the subject) acting as the moderator.

As an established scientist who’s a celebrity, you know that a two-hour live show with Neil deGrasse Tyson debating UFOs will have a strong chance of finding a streamer or broadcaster who’s interested in bringing it to the public. Let’s find one together.

The government’s increasing openness on the subject has created a hunger among people to hear more about this subject, and for it to be discussed in a calm, rational way. You’re gifted at making information entertaining and accessible — here is your chance to do it on a subject that screams for your comity rather than your comedy.

Maybe I’ll score some points with you, maybe I’ll just be the punching bag. But either way, people will learn a thing or two. Done with the right spirit, it would legitimately serve the public interest.

The where and when are details that get worked out every day on much more complicated productions than this one would be. There’s contact information at the end of this article where you can write me with your answer. Say yes, and let’s makes some history.

As an astrophysicist, Neil deGrasse Tyson’s academic credentials include impressive big names: Harvard, Princeton, UT Austin, and Columbia. He’s the director of the Hayden Planetarium in New York City. In 2014, he hosted the revised version of Cosmos. America’s leading science communicator, Tyson has the books, lectures, awards, degrees, and paid speaking tours to prove it. He hosts the weekly podcast Star Talk and its TV version on National Geographic. Twitter: @neiltyson

As a writer/producer, Bryce Zabel has created five primetime drama series. He has worked as a CNN correspondent, and an award-winning investigative reporter for PBS. He’s the current co-host of Need to Know with Coulthart and Zabel, creator of the Medium publication Trail of the Saucers, and author of A.D. After Disclosure. He is a former chairman/CEO of the Television Academy, and an adjunct professor at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. Twitter: @hollywoodufos

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