Editing UFO conspiracy theories (section)

===='Men in Black' legends====
{{main|Men in black}}
[[File:Gray Barker.jpg|thumb|right|Gray Barker poses with his book cover art]]
1956 saw the publication of [[Gray Barker]]'s ''[[They Knew Too Much About Flying Saucers]]'', the book which publicized the idea of [[Men in black|Men in Black]] who appear to UFO witnesses and warn them to keep quiet.<ref name="Barkun2006"/>{{rp|82}} There has been continued speculation that the men in black are government agents who harass and threaten UFO witnesses.

According to the ''[[Skeptical Inquirer]]'' article "Gray Barker: My Friend, the Myth-Maker", there may have been "a grain of truth" to Barker's writings on the Men in Black, in that government agencies did attempt to discourage public interest in UFOs during the 1950s. However, Barker is thought to have greatly embellished the facts of the situation. In the same ''Skeptical Inquirer'' article, Sherwood revealed that, in the late 1960s, he and Barker collaborated on a brief fictional notice alluding to the Men in Black, which was published as fact first in [[Raymond A. Palmer]]'s ''[[Flying Saucers (magazine)|Flying Saucers]]'' magazine and some of Barker's own publications. In the story, Sherwood (writing as "Dr. Richard H. Pratt") claimed he was ordered to silence by the "blackmen" after learning that UFOs were time-travelling vehicles. Barker later wrote to Sherwood, "Evidently the fans swallowed this one with a gulp."<ref>John C. Sherwood. [http://www.csicop.org/si/show/gray_barker_my_friend_the_myth-maker/ "Gray Barker: My Friend, the Myth-Maker"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110512004941/http://www.csicop.org/si/show/gray_barker_my_friend_the_myth-maker/ |date=2011-05-12 }}. ''[[Skeptical Inquirer]]''. May/June 1998. Retrieved on June 19, 2008.</ref>