Lying (misleading) is a complicated subject. Though some use it to excuse too much, lying and misleading can actually help things flow smoothly and justly.

In this case, if the interviewee had been radically honest and interviewer had not had a backup question, the interview might have gone badly, even though the interviewee apparently was a good employ.

In fact, radical/extreme honesty is often seen as a sign of childhood problems or mild autism by mental health practitioners, as people normally learn to white lie at young age.