Right, because JSON makes a great ad-hoc data format. XML is a heavy duty format with very strict heavy duty tooling which can do things that JSON isn’t a great fit for (heavily nested, structurally complex, large, exactingly created, extremely formalized, etc.) Developers of a certain age were traumatized by having to work with XML that was the default choice for applications that JSON would have been a much better fit for: lightweight tasks with ad-hoc formats like simple configuration files, simple request data for async JavaScript, etc. They often had lax specifications with poorly considered nesting rules, improper namespace configuration, etc. Or, even worse, I had to regularly parse large amounts of XML handwritten in editors by nontechnical people following policies written by other nontechnical people that thought they were technical.

Having to parse a big pile of sloppy JSON data can inspire you to take an eeextra long lunch. Having to parse a big pile of sloppy XML using real XML tools inspires you take an extra long lunch browsing job openings that don’t contain the word XML.