From a legal standpoint, the only rule in the U.S. is that the name on your booking must match the name on your passport, driver's license, or any other form of ID accepted by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
In reality, the situation is quite different.
The staff viewed a training video the week prior and couldn't help but share the knowledge.
TSA is concerned with criminal activity, not confirming the name on the booking matches the name on the passport.