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I would consider that this is a journalist quoting a scientist. The fault might lie there. Whenever I have been a party to these things the result has always been cringe-worthy on our end. Every single time there is a quote that is either out of context, or lacks context. It amazes me, but the SOP for journalists when covering science seems to be to get the quotes, write the story, then send it to their editor. I don't think they typically ask the scientists for a proofread. At any rate, I would assume that their reasoning extends beyond speculation in this case. They probably have good reasons to exclude other possibilities.