Neon Azimuth

History

Paul McGinnis launched Neon Azimuth in 1994 as a guide to "sources and methods that can be used to learn about secret U.S. military programs." He distributed it electronically via email (TRADER@cup.portal.com) and maintained back issues on an FTP server at ftp.shell.portal.com in the directory /pub/trader/secrecy/neon-azimuth. His postal address was PO Box 28084, Santa Ana, California 92799. The publication appeared at irregular intervals, with Issue #0 serving as an introduction and subscription notice.

The name was deliberately styled after real US military programme codenames: two-word combinations in all capitals, like SEEK CLOCK, CLASSIC LIGHTNING, or CAVALRY. McGinnis chose NEON AZIMUTH to have "no intrinsic meaning," mimicking the Pentagon's random codeword generators. The header carried the mock classification warning "WARNING NOTICE: INTELLIGENCE SOURCES OR METHODS INVOLVED (WNINTEL)," a parody of actual classification markings.

McGinnis operated within the same milieu as Glenn Campbell, author of the "Area 51 Viewer's Guide" and publisher of the "Groom Lake Desert Rat." His FTP site hosted Campbell's writings alongside Neon Azimuth issues in a shared directory structure devoted to "excessive government secrecy." The publication addressed a specific audience: researchers who wanted to locate and observe classified military installations, particularly those suspected of connection to advanced aerospace programmes or UFO-related activity.

Planned future topics included guides to obtaining government and military documents, satellite and aerial photography sources, and the Government Printing Office catalogue system. McGinnis offered a PGP public encryption key for anyone wanting to share "really sensitive material," and kept all correspondence and the mailing list private unless explicitly told otherwise.