The October 28 episode of Jeopardy! is quickly garnering backlash from fans who were not particularly fond of one of the clue answers. Fans and users online criticize the use of a sexist clue answer that made the contestants and Ken Jennings, the host, uncomfortable. Jennings apologized on the spot.
Videos by Wide Open Country
The episode was all going well and without a hitch. According to TV Insider, contestants included Will Wallace, a game design director and returning champ, Heather Ryan, a health program director, and Ian Taylor, a food sales rep. Wallace then picked up a $400 clue from the "Complete The Rhyming Phrase" category. This is when things went sideways really fast.
The clue reads as follows: "Men seldom make passes at..." With Wallace being a former champ, he fortunately knew the answer. Unfortunately, the answer was "Girls who wear glasses?", which opened a can of worms. The phrase was coined by Dorothy Parker, and was quickly a source of controversy in this Jeopardy! episode. Why? Well, Heather Ryan was wearing glasses.
Immediately, Jennings apologized to Heather after ruling Wallace's answer as correct. "A little problematic, sorry Heather," Jennings said. Heather, was visibly uncomfortable. Wallace, who answered, came to her defense and answered Jennings by saying.: "Very."
Fan Backlash
Many fans were quick to point out the situation and turned to social media to raise their concerns and complaints. Particularly, one Reddit thread was filled with criticism toward the clue.
"Rhyming phrases category was awful, especially the sexist clue," said one user. Another user answered by saying: "Frankly, I don't need to hear Ken read an obviously outdated and inappropriate clue and then call it 'problematic'." A third one said: "Poor Heather catching strays in the rhyming category!"
At the end of the day, Heather was able to shake off the uncomfortable moment and was positive and jolly. She ended up in second place, with Wallace coming in third, and Taylor becoming the champion with one-day winnings of $19,601.
This is far from the first Jeopardy! controversy the show has faced recently, with Ken Jennings's rulings being questioned time after time and the show facing race discrimination claims.
