Even the "no mention of knowledge" thing seems completely reasonable to me--if I had to say what they're saying, then I too would par my message down to the minimum to avoid confusing my audience. That's just basic communication skill and nothing sinister.

Maybe you've been fooled by TV that looks "spontaneous"--well, I spent time in video studios as a student and I used to be a director/ sound engineer/ resident composer for a company that made medical information videos. I can guarantee that almost nothing on TV or video is really spontaneous and faking spontaneity takes a lot of careful preparation.

Neville B

*And please don't throw me in that briar patch