In a recent episode of Jeopardy, a Connecticut eighth-grader misspelled "emancipation" which was part of the correct answer and as a result, lost $3,000 which he says was unfair and feels that he was cheated.
In the Final Jeopardy! question on Wednesday night, Thomas Hurley III spelt emancipation slightly wrong. The question was about the Emancipation Proclamation signed by President Abraham Lincoln. But Thomas spelled it "emanciptation" with an extra "t", but the answer was clearly correct, however, was host Alex Trebek said the judges would not accept the answer.
He bet $3,000 of his $9,600 in winnings and finished well behind a rival who amassed $66,600.
"I was pretty upset that I was cheated out of the final 'Jeopardy!' question," he told The News-Times of Danbury. "It was just a spelling error."
The show's Facebook fan page was flooded with support for player Thomas Hurley of Newtown, Conn., and brickbats for host Alex Trebek and the judges. "Shame on you Jeopardy & Alex!!" wrote one visitor.
"Come on Jeopardy, this is a quiz show NOT! a SPELLING BEE," wrote another on the Facebook page.
The Newtown Middle School student won $2,000 as the runner-up.
In response, the producers of "Jeopardy!" emailed the following statement to The Huffington Post:
If Jeopardy! were to give credit for an incorrect response (however minor), the show would effectively penalize the other players. We love presenting young people as contestants on our show, and make every effort to be fair and consistent in their treatment.
The Kids Jeopardy! program was filmed in February and broadcast last week.
