Controversy
The program caused a level of confusion and controversy upon its initial telecast that echoed earlier reality-muddying incidents such as Orson Welles' War of the Worlds radio broadcast. Very much like the Orson Welles' broadcast, the Alien Abduction: Incident in Lake County aired on UPN immediately following Real Vampires: Exposed!, which offered a tabloid-like investigation of vampires, leading some viewers to believe that Alien Abduction: Incident in Lake County was also portraying real events. Another way in which this video misled its viewers, was the way in which it was filmed. The style would soon be made popular through The Blair Witch Project. UFO pseudoscientists, including Stanton Friedman, were not informed of the nature of the show by the program's producers, and controversy and confusion also centered on the lack of disclaimers. The program was believed to be based on a factual event, however the supposed "original" tape that the program was based on, was actually another science fiction thriller movie by the same director.
Debate over the hoax nature of the program occurred on Internet chat rooms and bulletin boards, where the program's status as fiction was exposed thanks to the character of Tommy McPherson being linked to actor Kristian Ayre. The program was also proved to be a hoax when an interview with the Lake County Sheriff's department stated that no one named McPherson lived in Lake County at the time. Some viewers continued to insist that portions of the program were fabricated but that the McPhersons' experience itself was real, and others that the program itself was evidence of a conspiracy. The show was subsequently broadcast in New Zealand on TVNZ, with a disclaimer that its authenticity was still a topic of dispute in the United States. TVNZ nevertheless cut the show's final credits, "prevent New Zealand audiences from noting that the McPhersons were played by actors."
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