‘Jeopardy’ Host Mike Richards Made Sexist Remarks Made on Podcast
Written by SOURCE on August 19, 2021
The skeletons keep coming out of the closet for Jeopardy! executive producer and newly appointed host Mike Richards.
The Ringer reports audio from every episode of a podcast titled The Randumb Show, which was helmed by Richards with co-host and former assistant Beth Triffon, had recently been removed. The suspicious decision was likely sparked by The Ringer’s inquiry into the podcast that lasted only 41 episodes, from 2013 to 2014.
The Randumb Show was meant to be a behind-the-scenes look at The Price Is Right where Richards served as executive producer, but it also featured insensitive commentary about women. Richards said in an episode that Triffon’s friends “look terrible in the picture … they look fat and not good in the picture.” Richard also commented on their one-piece swimsuit, saying the outfit made them look “really frumpy and overweight.”
Earlier this month, two discrimination lawsuits involving Richards from a decade ago resurfaced. Former Price Is Right model Brandi Cochran alleged in her complaint that Richards preferred that the models looked like they were going out on a date, and suggested they wear bikinis more frequently on the show. Cochran claimed she didn’t want to push back having a child after noticing how two producers treated her peers after they got pregnant.
Richards also used the derogatory terms for little people and the intellectually disabled on the podcast, and bestowed praise specifically on white male hosts. When speaking about Survivor host Jeff Probst, Richards admitted that he would “cheer for him to succeed because I feel like through his success I could have some success hosting.”
“It is humbling to confront a terribly embarrassing moment of misjudgment, thoughtlessness, and insensitivity from nearly a decade ago,” Richards said of the remarks made on the resurfaced podcast. “Looking back now, there is no excuse, of course, for the comments I made on this podcast and I am deeply sorry.”
“The podcast was intended to be a series of irreverent conversations between longtime friends who had a history of joking around. Even with the passage of time, it’s more than clear that my attempts to be funny and provocative were not acceptable, and I have removed the episodes,” he continued. “My responsibilities today as a father, husband, and a public personality who speaks to many people through my role on television means I have substantial and serious obligations as a role model, and I intend to live up to them.”
The resurfaced podcast remarks are the latest dark cloud hanging over Jeopardy!, ever since the announcement that Richards would become the successor to the late Alex Trebek. While much of the public wanted LeVar Burton to land the coveted gig, the decision to go with Richards was immediately met with backlash since he already serves as an EP on the show. Even though the New York Times reports Richards “moved aside after he emerged as a candidate,” the validity of the search has still been called into question.
