Jeopardy! is the latest victim swept up in a wave of social media-driven fan fury this week after the famed quiz show delivered what was deemed by some viewers as an offensive clue during Monday’s broadcast.
The topic in question concerned a medical condition in which the contestants were asked to name the human organ targeted by a disease known as the “Grinch Syndrome,” the New York Post reported.
Guest host Savannah Guthrie read the clue during Monday’s episode, saying, “Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome is also known as Grinch syndrome because this organ is too small.”
CBS
The answer the show was looking for was “the heart.” But according to doctors at Johns Hopkins Medicine, the syndrome is often misunderstood and most people who suffer from it have normal sized hearts.
By Tuesday, the show was apologizing after people who suffer from the syndrome informed the long-running game show that “Grinch Syndrome” is viewed as an offensive term because the Dr. Seuss character, The Grinch, has a heart that is too small because he is filled with hate, not because he has a medical condition.
Consequently, the show offered an apology, saying, “Yesterday’s program included a clue about postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS). After hearing from the community, we found we used an outdated and inaccurate term for this disorder, and we apologize.”
Still, social media exploded with condemnation for the game show’s clue:
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