Jeopardy! Apologizes for Controversial Clue
Jeopardy! issued an apology after a clue aired on October 24 sparked backlash among fans. The category was titled "Daddy is there really a…" and the clue read:
No: A.I. Generated The TikTok Image of this pig/human eventually killed by Tim Cheese.
The correct response was Who is John Pork? None of the contestants buzzed in. After reading the clue, host Ken Jennings admitted, “I didn’t understand any of that,” which caused laughter among the contestants.
About John Pork
John Pork is a viral internet character depicted as a pig-human hybrid. The digital image shows a man’s body with a pig’s head. TikTok users humorously claimed he had “died,” leading to the “RIP John Pork” trend online. Despite a 2023 rumor that he was shot and killed, John Pork continues to post videos on TikTok.
Response and Apology
After fans noted that John Pork existed before the rise of AI, criticizing the clue’s description, Jeopardy! released an apology video. Ken Jennings said:
When we played a clue recently on Jeopardy! about John Pork, I remarked that ‘I didn’t understand a word of it.’ Well, I’ve had the chance to learn quite a bit since that clue aired about the late Mr. Pork, including the fact that some viewers took exception with our description of him as AI-generated.
Now, even though AI is used heavily in many of his TikToks, it’s possible that wasn’t the best wording to refer to his original appearances.
Summary
Jeopardy! acknowledged the controversy and clarified that while AI contributes to John Pork’s TikToks, calling him AI-generated was misleading regarding his origins.
Author’s note: The incident highlights the challenges of referencing viral internet culture accurately on mainstream platforms.