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screenshot of the story linked in post showing a section saying: Cyber correspondent Joe Tidy says he didn't know PHP existed until yesterday morning - it's "one of these things we take for granted", he says.

2026-10-22 03:20:23

rachel@norfolk.social

The BBC being absolutely on the button. Their Cyber correspondent had never even heard of php before? Really??? 🤦‍♀️

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/ckgel5xp2xv9t

#php

2026-10-22 03:42:23

Harry W.

hazz223@mstdn.social

@rachel Lol wut? That language that's been like 60% of the internet for 25 years?

2026-10-22 03:43:41

Katie Fenn

katiefenn@front-end.social

@rachel This is hilarious and also extremely credible. Journalists come from a very rarified in-group culture, and get moved around briefs as they get promoted. They get hired straight from top universities, they have no experience working in the sectors in which they cover, or specialist publications.

2026-10-22 03:54:15

Ambivalent Dictator For Life

pikesley@mastodon.me.uk

@rachel many such cases

2026-10-22 03:55:58

Else, Someone

nobody@mastodon.acm.org

@rachel
Media talking to the experts be like
@mothninja

2026-10-22 03:56:36

Friendly Neighborhood Chuck!

oneeyedman@frikiverse.zone

@rachel WOT??

2026-10-22 04:05:42

RolloTreadway

RolloTreadway@beige.party

@rachel "Cyber correspondent" almost certainly means he has experience of reporting on tech companies. Whether he's ever touched a computer was probably never considered important.

(and in fairness, mainstream stories that relate to programming things are very rare, and it wouldn't be considered a good use to employ someone with that specific experience just on the off chance one comes up.)

2026-10-22 04:07:07

catch

catch56@kolektiva.social

@rachel their chief political correspondent had never heard of anarcho-syndicalism a few years ago either.

2026-10-22 04:09:23

Martin Hamilton

m@martinh.net

@rachel Tech correspondents right now frantically asking ChatGPT how is website made?

2026-10-22 04:11:54

BashStKid

BashStKid@mastodon.online

@rachel Being Bloody Clueless.

Imagine being called a military correspondent if your first piece to camera was “I’ve discovered these things called guns, they’re great, now listen to my opinions on wars”

2026-10-22 04:13:12

Erik Ableson

erik@infrageeks.social

@rachel How about instead of “Cyber Correspondent” they try talking to “Run of the mill sysadmin”?

While I realize we aren’t generally as photogenic, they might actually have a clue

2026-10-22 04:18:53

Madeleine Morris

Remittancegirl@mstdn.social

@rachel I am not a programmer, I just had a couple of Word Press websites and even I know what PHP is.

How badly is the BBC paying these days.

2026-10-22 04:19:15

athmane mokraoui [BoF] ⏚ꝃñ⌁⁂

ButterflyOfFire@mstdn.fr

@rachel 🤭😅

2026-10-22 04:23:26

AlisonW ♿🏳️‍🌈♾️

AlisonW@fedimon.uk

@rachel
If your 'expert' doesn't know of the existence of something basic to their field of alleged expertise then maybe they aren't the 'expert' you pay them to be! 😳

2026-10-22 04:25:36

eviloatmeal

eviloatmeal@floppy.peepee.party

@rachel

2026-10-22 04:29:34

gudenau

gudenau@hachyderm.io

@rachel HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW PHP IN THAT POSITION???

Man we are so cooked. :-/

2026-10-22 04:31:01

Violet (borrowing Helle's account for now) :verifiedplural:

helle@tacobelllabs.net

@rachel He was too busy cybering. — Vi

2026-10-22 04:36:29

Ded Frightyear

Bez_Lightyear@crispsandwi.ch

@rachel "Cyber Correspondent" = some BBC bigwig's son who has shown another BBC journalist a TikTok clip.

2026-10-22 04:36:59

Chapter One

chapter1@mastodon.social

@rachel Please don't show this to Ed Zitron :)

2026-10-22 04:37:35

grob (teeth era) 🇺🇦🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

grob@mstdn.social

@rachel lol I can't anymore 😂 "Joe Tidy" that's just gotta be made up

2026-10-22 04:37:53

Dieu

hllizi@hespere.de

@rachel he's probably spent most of his career as a metaverse torso?

2026-10-22 04:41:47

Marud :mastodont_v2:

marud@social.marud.fr

@rachel my impostor syndrome goes better each day

2026-10-22 04:47:18

Speaktrap

speaktrap@mastodon.com.pl

@rachel I'm kinda jealous (wish I didn't know PHP exists)

2026-10-22 04:49:51

I_give_u_worms

i_give_u_worms@beige.party

@rachel fire that talking head

2026-10-22 04:52:21

philipp

eingemaischt@chaos.social

@rachel "I didn't know PHP existed even on this cybersecurity appliance".....

2026-10-22 04:52:27

Angus Marshall :2001: :linux:

marshalla99@thx.gg

@rachel All the actual real experts were busy doing more important things...

2026-10-22 04:57:26

Morten

drgroftehauge@sigmoid.social

@rachel Joe's next job could be in ballet (he just doesn't know it yet)

2026-10-22 04:57:37

noplasticshower

noplasticshower@infosec.exchange

@rachel moron

2026-10-22 05:00:04

coldclimate

coldclimate@hachyderm.io

@rachel fucks sakes

2026-10-22 05:04:09

Mr. Math (gentauro)

gentauro@mastodon.social

@rachel real experts rarely appear on TV shows.

2026-10-22 05:06:56

bent0_b0x :antifa:🏴‍☠️🏳️‍🌈🦩

bent0_b0x@norden.social

@rachel I didn't know BBC existed, until yesterday morning.

2026-10-22 05:07:42

dick_turpin :essex: :cc:

dick_turpin@mastodon.org.uk

@rachel Doesn't surprise me in the slightest. I wouldn't trust most of the so-called experts the BBC trundles out to sit the right way on a lavatory.

2026-10-22 05:08:00

Barry Rowlingson

geospacedman@mastodon.social

@rachel Sure they got the right person in for the interview this time? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guy_Goma_BBC_interview

2026-10-22 05:11:21

Luke

luke@social.sdfeu.org

@rachel probably more used to reviewing Apple products than any actual technology or geekery.

2026-10-22 05:12:12

Hugh Elordi

HughElordi@mastodon.social

@rachel hmm

2026-10-22 05:13:01

Crucial Breeze

crucialbreeze@mastodon.social

@rachel there’s an old saying along the lines of you only learn about the media when they cover a subject you know something about .

Now imagine this level of knowledge- from people presenting as specialists- is fairly typical for most of them. And then imagine the quality of the majority of information consumed by BBC punters across the gamut of news .

2026-10-22 05:24:07

spooky Ske-Lil-ton 🦇

Larymir@chaos.social

@rachel has he never used a phpBB forum? :o

2026-10-22 05:25:19

Em & future cats 🇺🇦🐈🏳️‍🌈

em_and_future_cats@mastodon.social

@rachel I am an environmental scientist and mostly leave technology alone… but even I have seen and heard about php before this past week 🙄
Then I hear my husband say things like “oh the nyt and bbc said this is what happened.” Bruh, they don’t have a clue what happened compared to the old time computer experts 🫠🙃

2026-10-22 05:31:55

funnymonkey

funnymonkey@freeradical.zone

@rachel
Wow. Just, wow.

2026-10-22 05:32:55

Cyberfarmer Colin

cyberfarmer@infosec.exchange

A wojak style meme with a top and bottom The top is labelled "People who are into cyber security" the wojaks are put together and attractive The bottom is labelled "People who do cyber security" and the wojaks are extremely <br />dishevelled, look like they haven't slept in a week, and both have a monster energy drink

@rachel ah yes its just this meme

2026-10-22 05:36:22

blueorangeblue

blueorangeblue@c.im

@rachel bless this summer child

2026-10-22 05:42:11

vanecx

vanecx@mastodon.pirateparty.be

@rachel It's so hard to believe I'm more inclined to believe there is a mistake in the transcription (can't find the actual footage)

2026-10-22 05:45:10

Space Hobo

spacehobo@teh.entar.net

Homer Simpson sitting at a table, reading "Internet For Dummies: Remedial Edition" and remarking "They have the Internet on computers now."

@rachel

2026-10-22 05:46:47

Angie

angiebaby@mas.to

@rachel He had vibe-coder energy before it was "cool".

2026-10-22 05:49:03

Kim

kim@fedi.social

@rachel@norfolk.social I'm old enough that 'Cyber' just makes me think of people asking
a/s/l?
u want to cyber?
on chatrooms. Maybe that was his field of expertise?