I suspect that was the objective of those behind this latest scam, to further taint Roswell until people lose interest in one of the pivotal cases of UFOlogy.
An interesting thought and a question we should try to answer. I think it's unreasonable to suppose that Carey, Schmitt, Bragalia, or Mausson would want, much less seek, to further ‘taint’ the Roswell case. The first three, especially, have devoted too much time and energy to investigating that case to willingly undermine it. But we know nothing of the motives and intentions of Adam Dew or the silent co-owner of the slides.
My impression of Dew is that he lacked motivation to undermine the credibility of the alien theory concerning Roswell and personally saw the slides as a means rather than an end for himself – a means by which to gain income [and visibility for himself and his business] primarily through the production of a documentary about the Roswell slides and the public reaction to them. It’s hard to believe, but not impossible, that he didn’t find out about the recently released and improved deblurring software earlier and use it to clarify the writing on the placard during the last year or two. There is evidence that he both obscured the placard further by whiting it out in what he released pre-May 5th and also withheld the fully digitalized and clarified slides not only from the public but from the four ufologists involved. The error made by Carey and Schmitt seems to have been to accept Dew’s conditions of non-disclosure to other ufo researchers and the apparent compartmentalization of the ensuing investigation in which Dew and the co-owner of the slides maintained control of what was shared from the digital processing of the slides.
If there had been no evidence dating the exposure of the slides to the late 1940s, their possible connection to Roswell would have been moot. We might, for example, have been more likely to credit hypotheses such as George Wingfield's that the slides themselves were the product of hoaxers such as John Lundberg. The slides would not have been referred to as 'the Roswell slides’ were they not linked to the Roswell region and people living there in the late 1940s. Once that connection became viable, it was inevitable that Carey, Schmitt, Bragalia, and Mausson would be motivated to seek educated opinions about and possible identification of the nature of the body in the glass case, difficult as that would be on the basis of only two blurred and aged kodachrome slides. It was also inevitable that ufo researchers on both sides of the long debate over what happened at Roswell in 1947 would become intensely interested in following this research, and also seek to become involved in it. The involvement of other researchers was, however, prohibited by the NDAs Carey and Schmitt had to sign to participate in research into the slides. It’s unknown what the agreement was concerning the compartmentalization of the research and whether a clearly defined agreement existed concerning the obligations of all parties to disclose details of their individual investigations to one another. There is an unanswered question whether Dew advised Carey and Schmitt of everything he learned in his own investigations, technologically and otherwise. Yet to be disclosed are the specifics of the NDAs themselves, and they might only be disclosed in a court of law.
In the circumstances as I understand them, I think it’s likely that Dew knew at some point in the last year what the placard states and that he lived on hope that no one else would discover it. That seems to be why he continued to hold back the clearest digitalizations of the slides through the week following May 5. I would not be surprised if Carey and Schmitt were to consider suing Dew and perhaps the unnamed co-owner of the slides, and if they decide to do that I think they could win the suit depending on the conditions and guarantees made in the NDA or other writings.
There is also a possibility that Dew was approached by other parties interested in the Roswell slides and the effect of their presentation on public perceptions of the Roswell case. That possibility opens other avenues for discovery. Eventually something or someone will likely give, especially if a suit is filed by Carey and Schmitt.
