I "got lucky" in the sense that my experiences have primed me to recognize that particular kind of question. If the article had actually modified the question framing at all, rather than just copying the existing one, it maybe wouldn't have worked that way.

It's the same reaction I have to the Monte Hall problem: I don't have to think or be clever to get the right answer. So naturally you couldn't effectively teach me anything by simply posing the question, and any information you collect by doing so won't accurately reflect what I learn or how well I think. You'd just be testing topical familiarity.