If I read the article correctly, they handed the hiring committee /their own/ anonymized packets and the committee chose to only hire 1/3 of themselves. That mean numer 2 is not the case. Presumably the hiring committee prepared for their interviews of they passed their rounds.
Number 1 can still be true, and likely is. But then what's the point of using dated packets to test the hiring committees calibration?
1. Standards got higher. Luckily if you got in early and proved yourself you are OK. But doesn't mean you would pass the current interview.
2. A marathon runner (with rare exceptions) can't run a marathon on a random day. They train for a specific date. Same with interview prep.