Jeopardy! Contestant Involved in Sexist Clue Incident Speaks Out About the ‘Uncomfortable’ Moment: ‘An Odd Choice’

A Jeopardy! contestant is addressing the sexist clue that was given on a recent episode.

Heather Ryan, who competed on the Oct. 28 episode of the quiz competition show, spoke to Binghamton University’s student-run newspaper Pipe Dream on Nov. 6 to address a sexist clue that drew attention to the show.

After reading the hint, “Men seldom make passes at…,” to which the answer was, “Girls who wear glasses,” host Ken Jennings realized Ryan was wearing glasses and apologized.

“It is definitely an odd choice,” Ryan told the paper. “I think it made everybody in the audience and on stage, and Ken Jennings too, a little uncomfortable. It was like, ‘Oh, that was unexpected.’”

Ryan’s suggestion? “Maybe we choose better rhyming phrases in 2024,” she said.

“Unfortunately, there are still girls who are [in] middle school and they don’t want to wear their glasses and they’re losing out on their education,” she continued. “So, I think it’s much better to be able to see than anything else.”

As for the rest of her experience participating in the show, Ryan, who lost by just $1 according to the meticulous J! Archive, said “it was very fun” to be a part of.

“I had a great time,” she said. “Everybody there was very welcoming. It’s such a part of American culture that I definitely wanted to go on when I got the call for it.”

“It’s just a very special thing to play a small role in this big part,” she added. “It’s been running for 40 years, and so I got to play my part in it.”

On the episode, Jennings admitted that the line was “a little problematic,” and said, “Sorry, Heather” immediately after reading it. Contestant Will Wallace, who gave the answer, emphasized that was “very” problematic.

Jennings has held the position of official host for just under a year after guest hosting when Alex Trebek died in late 2020. Trebek had been on the show for 37 seasons before his death from pancreatic cancer. Jennings was well known to fans from his 74 consecutive Jeopardy! wins in 2004.

Trebek even hosted the game show’s Greatest of All Time tournament in January 2020, where Jennings competed against fellow Jeopardy! greats James Holzhauer and Brad Rutter. Jennings ended up winning $1 million, while Holzhauer and Rutter were each awarded $250,000.

“It has taken 15 years for Ken Jennings to finally answer the question, ‘Is he as good as he appeared to be in that great run on Jeopardy?’” Trebek said after Jennings’ victory.

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Jeopardy! airs weeknights on ABC (check local listings).