A cabbie waiting for his fare at the BBC's offices last week was mistaken for a technology expert and wound up being peppered with questions on-air about the latest Apple Computer/Beatles Apple Records suit on the network's live news channel. The BBC claims that when a producer called out the name of Guy Kewney (a bearded, white technology journalist), the cabbie (a cherubic black man with a French accent, whose name remains unknown) raised his hand. [Update: Now we learn he's not a cabbie, but a graduate student there for a job interview. Also: His first name is also Guy.] He was immediately whisked into the studio, and was soon bumbling his way through an interview with a perky BBC correspondent. Note the look on his face when she identifies him as Kewney, and the reality of it all sets in. Fabulous. But also revealing, because he instantly seems to understand that he can just bluff his way through -- and ends up sounding no different than half the stuffed shirts who wander onto cable TV. We especially like this exchange.
BBC: With regards to the costs involved, do you think now more people will be downloading online?
Cabbie: Actually if you can walk everywhere you are going to see a lot of people downloading the Internet and the Web site and everything they want. But I think it is much better for development and to inform people what they want and to get the easy way and so faster if they are looking for.
Exactly.
Shares