Howard Blum

Career and Credentials

Howard Blum is an award-winning American investigative journalist with a distinguished career spanning four decades. Educated at Stanford University (where he earned both his undergraduate degree and an M.A. in government in 1970) and the London School of Economics, Blum has worked for The Village Voice and The New York Times, where he was twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting. He is currently a contributing editor at Vanity Fair and has authored numerous bestselling books on history, espionage, and government secrecy.

Out There and the DIA UFO Working Group

Blum's most significant contribution to UFO research came with the 1990 publication of Out There: The Government's Secret Quest for Extraterrestrials (Simon & Schuster). The book traces the operations of a classified Defense Intelligence Agency task force tasked with investigating potential extraterrestrial threats to national security. Blum's investigation was triggered when an American intelligence official provided him with a tip in 1987 while he was researching another book, I Pledge Allegiance: The True Story of the Walkers. This led him down a multi-year rabbit hole into one of the government's most closely guarded secrets.

The book is based on an extraordinary foundation: 212 interviews conducted by Blum and approximately 200 published sources. Blum documents his own intellectual journey from initial skepticism to recognition that serious government institutions have taken the UFO phenomenon seriously for decades. His work reveals how the Pentagon and intelligence community collected, analyzed, and concealed data on reported extraterrestrial visitations, revealing patterns of deliberate deception and compartmentalization.

Documentary Journalism and Impact

What distinguishes Blum's work is his methodology as a professional journalist applying rigorous investigative standards to classified subjects. Rather than relying on anonymous sources or unverified testimonies, he grounded his narrative in documentary evidence, official interviews (where possible), and cross-referenced accounts. His reputation as an Edgar Award winner for American Lightning and multiple New York Times bestseller author gave him credibility and access that amateur researchers lack. Out There became foundational reading in the disclosure movement, cited by subsequent researchers, government officials, and members of Congress interested in understanding the historical depth of official UFO investigations.

Blum's other major works—including Night of the Assassins, In the Enemy's House, The Last Goodnight, Dark Invasion, and Gangland—demonstrate consistent focus on uncovering hidden truths about government activities, espionage, and institutional power, establishing him as a serious historian of classified programs rather than a UFO sensationalist.