Predictive programming is the claim that planned events are first shown to the public as entertainment, so that when those events occur, resistance is already lower.
What adherents claim. Governments, intelligence agencies, or global elites seed future policies, technologies, and disasters into movies, television, and books. The stories are presented as harmless fiction. Over time, the public is desensitized and is more willing to accept the real event. Writer Alan Watt is often credited with coining the term.
The plain counterpoint. Writers and filmmakers often extrapolate from news, science, and political debate already in public view. A long-running catalog of stories will contain later resemblances, which can be collected after the fact. Some creators have described their own hits as jokes, satire, or work with technical consultants, not as a plan.
This entry is the general frame for a cluster of case studies, each tied to a single work.