Danger! viewers were seething after ABC bosses decided to place a ‘distracting’ and ‘unnecessary’ countdown widget for Donald Trump and President Joe Biden’s first debate in the corner of the screen for the entire episode – leaving out one contestant’s face shot was repeatedly blocked.
Thursday’s episode of the game show aired just before the chaotic head-to-head, and the network decided to promote the historic event with an eye-catching sticker.
Unfortunately, the placement of the countdown meant that player Jayaker Kolli was not visible during the wide shots.
Frustrated viewers were angry about the position of the sticker and expressed their annoyance on social media.
As he walked to X, someone shouted, “This countdown clock is so unnecessary.”
Jeopardy! player Jayaker Kolli was repeatedly blocked from view during Thursday’s episode due to a presidential debate countdown sticker
The widget blocked the player’s entire face during the wide shots
Another asked: ‘Do we really need a big countdown block for the debate that covers the upright side of the screen?’
A third added, “WTF with the debate countdown clock in the corner during Jeopardy? Very distracting. And a way to ruin Jayaker’s moment.”
“Ridiculous that ABC has a giant debate countdown bug covering the participants’ faces and the screen. Unprofessional,” said a fourth.
A fifth reacted strongly: “I would be so angry if my head was blocked during the entire episode of Jeopardy by an unnecessary debate countdown.”
“So you finally get on #Jeopardy and the idiots at #ABC cover your face with this idiotic countdown clock… for the entire game,” another added.
As a result of the countdown, Texas-based medical student Jayaker was only visible during the episode when the camera zoomed in on him for close-ups.
He finished the match in second place, behind fellow players Luke Hemphill and Drew Basile.
Drew closed out his seven-day streak, winning a total of $129,601.
The ‘annoying’ sticker was visible on ABC throughout the episode
The countdown widget in the right corner proved to be a distraction for viewers
Viewers were quick to criticize ABC’s “ridiculous” decision, claiming it “ruined” Jayaker’s moment
Thursday night’s presidential debate was nothing short of chaotic, with Biden repeatedly stumbling over his words and losing his thread.
At one point, Trump even said of Biden, “I don’t know what he just said.”
But former President Trump also failed to land major blows in an appearance full of false claims.
Trump lied about his role in his supporters’ attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021 and tried to divert attention by focusing on other issues.
Pressed about his role, he said he was encouraging people to act “peacefully and patriotically,” before changing the subject and launching an attack on former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
Donald Trump and President Joe Biden during the first presidential debate
He said Biden “should be ashamed” of the way the January 6 suspects were treated.
Trump, who floated the idea of pardoning the rioters, claimed that his supporters who stormed the Capitol were actually peaceful and are now being politically persecuted.
In fact, rioters engaged in hand-to-hand combat with police and used improvised weapons to attack officers. More than 1,400 people have been charged with federal crimes stemming from the riots, and more than 1,000 of them have pleaded guilty or been convicted at trial.
“The only person standing here on this stage who is a convicted felon is the man I’m looking at right now,” Biden said of his rival.