'Jeopardy!' Fans Are Still Fuming Over Choice to Name Mike Richards as Host

More than a week after Jeopardy! named its new permanent host, the long-running game show is still facing backlash from fans over its selection of Mike Richards as Alex Trebek's replacement. Richards was named permanent host alongside Mayim Bialik, who will host the primetime specials and spinoff series, following a season featuring more than a dozen guest hosts vying for the role and after a "tremendous amount of work and deliberation" went into the selection process, though many feel the choice not only fell flat, but was also controversial given Richards' past.

Just days before the permanent host announcement, it was revealed that Richards, who serves as Jeopardy! executive producer, was at the center of allegations of discrimination from when he worked on The Price Is Right. In lawsuits filed by former Price Is Right models from Richards' time serving as executive producer, accusations of pregnancy discrimination were raised. Following his selection as host, The Ringer published an article chronicling some of the offensive remarks that Richards made on a Price is Right-themed podcast called The Randumb Show. The remarks, which were both racist and sexist, were made as Richards co-hosted the podcast from 2013 to 2014.

While Richards has since issued an apology for some of his past misgivings, it has all but fallen on deaf ears among Jeopardy! viewers still baffled over his selection. In fact, a recent Morning Consult poll published by Mediaite days after the permanent host announcement found that 14% of respondents would prefer LeVar Burton as their first pick to take over the quiz show, five times more than the number of Jeopardy! viewers who selected Richards as their No. 1 choice. Further doubling down on the backlash, the poll also found that 14% of respondents said the casting choices made them less interested in watching the game show. The backlash has not only continued to play out in polls, though, as social media has continued to be flooded with criticism.