Jeopardy Controversy – 'I Was Cheated' 12-Year-Old Claims, But Was He, Really?

If life hands you a dud card, complain and make the news, that’s what Thomas Hurley has done as his Jeopardy Controversy has hit the headlines.

He spelled Emancipation Proclamation wrong and was handed a runner-up spot because of it, but he reckons that’s unfair.

"I was pretty upset that I was cheated out of the final `Jeopardy!' question. It was just a spelling error,'' said the Newtown Middle School student, who still managed to take home a sizable cash prize. "It's generated a little bit of controversy," Hurley's mother, Suzanne, said. "He was a little stunned by it. He felt embarrassed. It was hard to watch.''

Unlike many kids, Hurley now has a healthy amount of money to start a college fund with, and he got to travel to California, and be on TV, and be talked about in newspapers and on the Internet.

Some kids are just born, they starve, and then they die. He should count himself pretty, pretty lucky, really. "They're proud of me,'' Thomas said of his parents. "It's just upsetting to have lost that way. I don't know why it would have counted as the wrong answer."

It wasn’t just Thomas who felt hard done by, for some reason, fans of the show decided they were annoyed too, posting things on social media about how outraged they were. Again, let’s shoot for perspective.

The Jeopardy people stand by their decision."If Jeopardy! were to give credit for an incorrect response (however minor), the show would effectively penalize the other players. We love presenting young people as contestants on our show, and make every effort to be fair and consistent in their treatment."

Host Alex Trebek is under fire for eliminating the kid