What did the declassified documents reveal?

Document Title: DARPA Mind Control Project Release Date: 2015-02-28 Source: The Black Vault, documents2.theblackvault.com/documents2/mindcontrol/13-F-1207Doc3.pdf This document, released in 2015, pertains to a research project funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) at Arizona State University. The project, titled "Toward Narrative Disruptors and Inductors," aimed to study the effects of narrative persuasion on human subjects. The document is a quarterly progress report submitted by Dr. Steven Corman, the principal investigator, to DARPA on July 15, 2012. The report covers the period from April 1, 2012, to June 30, 2012. The project, with a total value of $6,081,622, was managed by Dr. William Casebeer, a program manager at DARPA. The research teams involved in the project included neuropsychology, narrative, and persuasion teams. According to the report, the teams made significant progress during the reporting period. They held six day-long meetings to design experiments, prepared and submitted the first human subjects application to Arizona State University's Institutional Review Board (IRB), and selected mutually exclusive Christian and Muslim master narratives for the local narrative scenarios. However, the teams faced some challenges, including the decline of a postdoctoral research fellow candidate, Jacek Dmochowski, and the need for a budget modification to include additional funds for EEG equipment and salary for the neuropsych ARP position. The document also mentions the potential problem of persuasion fatigue, which could negatively affect the data collected from the persuasion outcomes study. The solution proposed was to group the videos in sets of three that share a common theme. Technical Progress / Quarterly Expenditure Report: The cumulative spending plan for the project was $2,303,196. The actual cost for the reporting period was $198,390.35, which was $198,390.35 less than the planned cost. Technical Progress / Highlights - Observations: Task 1.1 Startup: The contract with the Department of Interior was signed at the last minute before spending preauthorization ran out. The team is working on a budget modification proposal. Task 1.2 Design Narrative Stimuli: Initial story development involved researching mutually exclusive Christian and Muslim master narratives, developing local narrative scenarios, and conceptualizing how the videos fit into the overall experimental design. Task 1.3 Persuasion Protocol: The Persuasion Team advertised broadly for a postdoctoral research fellow with expertise in narrative persuasion. They received 14 applications and offered the position to Douglas Deiss from ASU. Task 1.4 Multi-model imaging: The team prepared and submitted the first human subjects application to ASU's IRB. Task 1.5 Knowledge Capture and Write results: The team identified mutually exclusive master narratives from Muslim and Christian traditions through consultation with CSC scholars. Task 1.6 Progress…

Why was this case declassified?

This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process.

Case · DAILY-003

DARPA Mind Control Project

JUL 5 · 2026Narrated by daily-declassified-darpa-mind-control-project5 minLast updated July 5, 2026

The short version

pdf This document, released in 2015, pertains to a research project funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) at Arizona State University. The project, titled "Toward Narrative Disruptors and Inductors," aimed to study the effects of narrative persuasion on human subjects.

Date: JUL 5 · 2026
Release: Declassified · U.S. public record (FOIA)

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Document Title: DARPA Mind Control Project Release Date: 2015-02-28 Source: The Black Vault, documents2.theblackvault.com/documents2/mindcontrol/13-F-1207Doc3.pdf This document, released in 2015, pertains to a research project funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) at…

Questions about this case

What was DARPA Mind Control Project about?: pdf This document, released in 2015, pertains to a research project funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) at Arizona State University. The project, titled "Toward Narrative Disruptors and Inductors," aimed to study the effects of narrative persuasion on human subjects.
Why was this case declassified?: This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. Storyflo narrates it directly from the public release.

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