Jeopardy! host Alex GTrebek didn’t handle a kid contestant properly and he is hearing about it on social media.
Last week, the trivial program held a kids edition, but things didn’t work as they normally do for host Alex Trebek, when he went a bit overboard with a 12-year-old contestant who misspelled the word “emancipation”.
Thomas Hurley III, an 8th grader from Newtown, Connecticut, says he was cheated out of $3,000 after he misspelled “Emancipation Proclamation” during the Final Jeopardy round.
Jeopardy! gives contestants the answer and they have to state the question.
In Hurley’s case the question was, “Abraham Lincoln called this document, which took effect in 1863, ‘a fit and necessary war measure.’”
The young boy answered correctly but included an extra T in the word emancipation, for which Trebek called him out saying that he had “badly misspelled” the word.
The Jeopardy! host added that the judges had considered the answer as incorrect. The youngster was seen hanging his head in defeat and muttering “what?”.
Even though Hurley had no chance of winning the round, he was pretty upset at being disqualified and losing $3,000 for a misspelling after he gave the correct answer.
His father is even angrier, saying that the host publicly humiliated his son on national television. But that is not the last Trebek is hearing about the young Connecticut contestant.
Social Media is getting in the mix now. The Jeopardy! Facebook page has seen many comments from viewers who are upset at Trebek’s treatment of the child.
On Twitter, opinions seem to be divided with some criticizing Trebek, while others support him,
Is this the ‘Saddest Moment in #Jeopardy ! History’?: http://t.co/lDX8HHQnNK #sctweets #scnews
— WIS News 10 (@wis10) August 5, 2013
People are only now realizing #AlexTrebek is a smug, pretentious, condescending snob? Watch any of his episodes from day 1 on #Jeopardy .
— Mitchell (@kade6767) August 5, 2013
RT @cmjcmj13 : @BostonDotCom Spelling is important. He should move on and consider this a learning opportunity! #jeopardy
— Boston.com (@BostonDotCom) August 5, 2013
Is proper spelling the unofficial rule of #Jeopardy ? A 12 year old game show contestant feels cheated over his lapse: http://t.co/MFVsSv7GBv
— Nightline (@Nightline) August 5, 2013
Do you think Jeopardy!’s host Alex Trebek is being unfairly targeted? Was he over the top when telling Thomas Hurley he misspelled “emancipation” badly?
[Image via Jeopardy!/Facebook]
