A strange new twist on an already mysterious place. We speak with an investigative journalist with a controversial story about what really happens at the U.S. military base called Area 51. A mystery that has given rise to some of the world's most enduring conspiracy theories.

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Part Three of The Current

The Mystery of Area 51

We started this segment with a clip of Orson Welles' famous War of The Worlds broadcast. It terrified a lot of Americans on Halloween night in 1938. It was, of course, a radio drama. But a lot of people didn't realize that and many panicked. That part of the story is well-known.

But according to Annie Jacobsen it doesn't end there. In a controversial new book, she makes the case that the War of The Worlds broadcast was on the minds of people in Washington and Moscow. And she suggests that the Kremlin decided it could use some of that panic to its own cold-war advantage.

Annie Jacobsen makes a connection between this story, and the creation of one the deepest, darkest places on earth in her book Area 51: An Uncensored History of America's Top Secret Military Base. Annie Jacobsen is an investigative reporter and a contributing editor with the Los Angeles Times Magazine. She was in Los Angeles.

Related Links:

• The Road to Area 51: After decades of denying the facility's existence, five former insiders speak out By Annie Jacobsen - LA Times
• NPR Fresh Air interview with Annie Jacobsen Area 51 'Uncensored': Was It UFOs Or The USSR? - WHYY
• A Military Post's Secrets: Espionage, Not Aliens By Janet Maslin - New York Times
• Toronto Star
• Roswell crash was Stalin plot to create mass panic, book says By Lesley Ciarula Taylor - Toronto Star

Last Word - The Great Wall of Vancouver

Dozens of store windows were smashed during last week's riot in Vancouver. And as plywood boards went up in place of shattered glass ... people grabbed markers and pens and began writing and drawing on the boards about how they felt about what happened. They were especially prolific on the boards in front of The Bay on Georgia Street ... what's come to be known as The Great Wall of Vancouver. Later today, those boards will come down. But the last word today, goes to some of those who have come to appreciate what has been written there.

Other segments from today's show:

• CUPW: History & Future
• Public Shaming