# Jeopardy Question **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 20, 2016, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253 "2016-05-20T19:58:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SanDiegoTim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85e7bf/32.png) [@SanDiegoTim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanDiegoTim)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/1 "2016-05-20T19:58:25Z")
This week’s show in Washington, DC primarily features media figures. While I think I only saw 3 or 4 of the 5 broadcasts, I noted newscasters/writers from both the broadcast networks, cable and print media, almost all of which are notably left of center. Unless I am mistaken there were no guests/players from FOX News or any more conservative leaning news outlets. I also noted a few left-leaning comments by Alex Trebec. I’ve watched the program for quite a few years and never sensed any political leaning one way or another. Is this something new? Does Alex Alex Trebec make the call w/regard to this particular feature program (Power Player)? I’m just curious as to how this works and not interested in a political discussion. ---
**Author:** ![yellowjacketcoder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/4bbf92/32.png) [@yellowjacketcoder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowjacketcoder)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/2 "2016-05-20T20:09:21Z")
[List of Players (PDF)](https://www.jeopardy.com/Assets/jeopardy/presskits/05-09-16%20JEOPARDY%20Power%20Players%20Tune%20In%20Release%20Final%20V2.pdf) SE Capp, on Monday’s show, is a Log Cabin Republican. Michael Steele, on Tuesday’s show, is former chair on the RNC. Ana Navarro, on Thursday’s show, is the CNN republican commentator. Doesn’t seem particularly unbalanced to me. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/3 "2016-05-20T20:14:41Z")
> [@yellowjacketcoder](#): > > Michael Steele, on Tuesday’s show, is former chair on the RNC. How much more right wing do you want? They probably approached a few dozen people and took those whose schedules matched their filming times. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/4 "2016-05-20T20:16:16Z")
No that the OP’s question has been answered, I have a related question. The clues seemed considerably easier this week. Do they dumb it down for celebrities? ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/5 "2016-05-20T20:21:43Z")
> [@yellowjacketcoder](#): > > [Ana Navarro, on Thursday’s show, is the CNN republican commentator. And a frequent panelist on The View, which likes to bring as many right wing commentators on the show as they can. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/6 "2016-05-20T20:21:48Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > No that the OP’s question has been answered, I have a related question. > > The clues seemed considerably easier this week. Do they dumb it down for celebrities? Yes. I think it’s partly because they don’t want to embarrass the celebrities and partly because the celebrity winnings go to charity. No one looks good when they have a regular contestant win $20,000 and the celebrity contestant wins $600 for charity. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/7 "2016-05-20T20:37:30Z")
> [@yellowjacketcoder](#): > > [List of Players (PDF)](https://www.jeopardy.com/Assets/jeopardy/presskits/05-09-16%20JEOPARDY%20Power%20Players%20Tune%20In%20Release%20Final%20V2.pdf) > > SE Capp, on Monday’s show, is a Log Cabin Republican. > > Michael Steele, on Tuesday’s show, is former chair on the RNC. > > Ana Navarro, on Thursday’s show, is the CNN republican commentator. > > Doesn’t seem particularly unbalanced to me. Cupp, not Capp. She’s one of our favorite CNN panelists. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/8 "2016-05-20T20:54:23Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > Yes. I think it’s partly because they don’t want to embarrass the celebrities and partly because the celebrity winnings go to charity. No one looks good when they have a regular contestant win $20,000 and the celebrity contestant wins $600 for charity. But how much the celebrity ends with **isn’t** the amount the charity gets. Those amounts are set in advance. For example, last night Sunny ended up with $0 after Final Jeopardy, but her charity still got $10,000. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/9 "2016-05-20T20:59:50Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > But how much the celebrity ends with **isn’t** the amount the charity gets. Those amounts are set in advance. For example, last night Sunny ended up with $0 after Final Jeopardy, but her charity still got $10,000. Very true, but the ‘don’t want to embarrass the celebrities’ theory still applies. Even if we refrain from guessing that the average celeb contestant is less knowledgeable than the average regular contestant, there’s the “test-wise” factor to be considered: the celebs are often pretty open about not being regular viewers, so they’re not necessarily going to do well with Jeopardy’s quirky question structures. It wouldn’t be good television to have an entire show of three people standing there not buzzing in. So they make the questions a bit less challenging for the celebrity editions. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/10 "2016-05-20T21:07:11Z")
> [@Maserschmidt](#): > > Cupp, not Capp. She’s one of our favorite CNN panelists. She’s one of a small subset of conservatives that I respect because she doesn’t let her beliefs overwhelm the facts. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/11 "2016-05-20T21:07:21Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > But how much the celebrity ends with **isn’t** the amount the charity gets. Those amounts are set in advance. For example, last night Sunny ended up with $0 after Final Jeopardy, but her charity still got $10,000. Looking on [j-archive.com](http://j-archive.com), the final scores were: Al: $20,005 ($50,000 to his charity) Ana: $11,000 ($11,000 to her charity) Sunny: $0 ($10,000 to her charity) It looks like the charity gets the amount you won, with some minimum amount guaranteed. Which makes Ana’s wager on Final Jeopardy hard to understand. She had $9,800, bet $1,200, and got it right. The minimum for the charity must have been at least $10,000. Bet it all; there is literally nothing to lose and everything to gain. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/12 "2016-05-20T21:11:15Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > The clues seemed considerably easier this week. Do they dumb it down for celebrities? > [@kunilou](#): > > Yes. I think it’s partly because they don’t want to embarrass the celebrities … It didn’t help! Boy, they missed some easy ones. Especially ones in their field! It’s one thing if I don’t know Washington power players and politicians, but these folks sure should. But, back to the OP, we noticed the pointed lack of FOX news types. It did seem like a deliberate choice. Even with the inclusion of Steele and Ms Log Cabin. Navarro made some anti-Trump joke that didn’t get booed, so the audience must also skew "Lib"eral. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/13 "2016-05-20T21:11:35Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > Very true, but the ‘don’t want to embarrass the celebrities’ theory still applies. Even if we refrain from guessing that the average celeb contestant is less knowledgeable than the average regular contestant, there’s the “test-wise” factor to be considered: the celebs are often pretty open about not being regular viewers, so they’re not necessarily going to do well with Jeopardy’s quirky question structures. > > It wouldn’t be good television to have an entire show of three people standing there not buzzing in. So they make the questions a bit less challenging for the celebrity editions. I don’t mind the difficulty level of the questions during the celebrity tournaments, but I wish they’d pick up the pace. The more clues you get through, the more money you could win for your charity; quit the hemming and hawing and pick a clue. Regis Philbin was insufferable for that. > [@Johnny\_Ace](#): > > > [@Maserschmidt](#): > > > > Cupp, not Capp. She’s one of our favorite CNN panelists. > > She’s one of a small subset of conservatives that I respect because she doesn’t let her beliefs overwhelm the facts. I’ve seen her once or twice on talking-head shows, but wasn’t particularly impressed. Maybe I should give her another chance. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/14 "2016-05-20T21:29:05Z")
Dumbing down the questions didn’t help Wolf Blitzer [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/DVC28oemocA/maxresdefault.jpg "CNN's Wolf Blitzer Jeopardy Fail -$4600") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVC28oemocA) ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/15 "2016-05-20T21:45:20Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > But, back to the OP, we noticed the pointed lack of FOX news types. It did seem like a deliberate choice. Even with the inclusion of Steele and Ms Log Cabin. Navarro made some anti-Trump joke that didn’t get booed, so the audience must also skew "Lib"eral. Well, they do use big words. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/16 "2016-05-20T22:00:51Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > No that the OP’s question has been answered, I have a related question. > > The clues seemed considerably easier this week. Do they dumb it down for celebrities? I’m sure they do. The celebrity shows are about giving money to charity and being funny. The pace is slower, and nobody makes daring bets, as they have no personal stake in the final score and don’t want to be embarrassed. A question_I_ want answered is why all the female movers and shakers were so pretty. There must be some ordinary looking women of note. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2016, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/17 "2016-05-20T22:27:19Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > A question_I_ want answered is why all the female movers and shakers were so pretty. There must be some ordinary looking women of note. “Ordinary” is reserved for the men. ---
**Author:** ![Cayuga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@Cayuga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cayuga)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2016, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/18 "2016-05-24T22:43:21Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Navarro made some anti-Trump joke that didn’t get booed, so the audience must also skew "Lib"eral. This is not the place for a political discussion, so I’ll limit myself to two points. 1. The only type of person I’d expect to boo an anti-[any person] joke is someone who is rabidly pro-[that person]. 2. One does not have to be liberal in order to not be pro-Trump. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2016, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/19 "2016-05-24T22:46:44Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I’ve seen her once or twice on talking-head shows, but wasn’t particularly impressed. Maybe I should give her another chance. You’ll be disappointed. She’s just a mouthpiece for the Conservative machine. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Woodhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@Miss\_Woodhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Woodhouse)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2016, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253/20 "2016-05-25T01:31:53Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > “Ordinary” is reserved for the men. So true. For a woman to be thought camera worthy she has to be pretty first. It doesn’t matter how intelligent or well spoken she is. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-question/755253.md?page=2)