‘Jeopardy!’ Bosses Drop Big News About Rule Change Amid Backlash From Viewers

Martin Holmes March 28, 2024, 9:12 am

Jeopardy! has been experimenting with format tweaks over the past year, including contestant and puzzle board split screens and, more controversially, encouraging contestants to recite the entire category names.

However, as many viewers have noticed during the currently airing Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament, the show seems to have relaxed its rule that contestants must read out the whole category every time they select a clue.

The game show’s executive producer, Michael Davies, confirmed this rule relaxation on a recent episode of Inside Jeopardy! podcast, where he admitted the change didn’t quite work as intended.

“I dont think we’ve made a perfect change,” Davies said. “We had briefed the contestants to give full names of categories… and then people have commented on that.”

“We’ve obviously gone back,” he continued. “If it’s a 12-word category, we’re not asking you to repeat all 12 words. It was getting a little informal, so that’s something we’re continuing to look at.”

Fans on social media have noticed the recent change, with one viewer writing, “I’m glad that these contestants are shortening the titles more. When a category title is long, it’s obnoxious to have to hear the entire title stated.”

This followed backlash from fans last year when the show first introduced the new rule.

“The producers forcing contestants to say “During Lou Gehrig’s Consecutive Game Streak” every time is ridiculous,” wrote one user of the Jeopardy! Reddit forum.

“Same, I’m beyond sick of this rule,” replied another.

“They need to at least make less awkward category titles if they’re going to insist on this,” suggested one fan.

Another added, “Seriously, if I ever get on I’m not following that rule, whatever wrath it incurs. What are they gonna do, kick me off in the middle of the episode?”

“There is no need to say the whole category, right? Especially when it’s a long-azz one…” said one viewer on X.

Long-time Jeopardy! producer Sarah Whitcomb Foss spoke last year about why the category rule was introduced, explaining, “Everyone has a lot of opinions, but we heard viewers are having trouble with where people were going on the game board and couldn’t really follow it.”

However, she added, “It’s not set in stone… it’s just a recommendation. We’d like to know what people think of it. Nothing can’t be changed or altered, but we’ve made it through every clue this season.”

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The show recently introduced another change during the second season of Celebrity Jeopardy! Rather than the clue taking up the whole screen, clues were displayed in a split-screen, with the clue board on the left and the three contestants shown in a vertical column on the right.

“[But] we barely heard a peep about it,” Davies said, explaining how he expected more backlash. “So maybe that is something we should put into the Monday to Friday show – immediately. It definitely helps with the geography of the program and understanding where the category is. I think we will continue to look at ways to bring the category into the full screen with the clue.”

What do you think about the category rule? Let us know in the comments below.

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