Update 4-20-2020--Did The TV show ‘Jeopardy’ Endorse The JW Bible?

I originally wrote about this topic on August 15, 2009 and updated it on January 1, 2013 and again on February 1, 2015 here. In previous blogs I have looked at this question from two perspectives.

FIRST, I checked out a Web Site that contains "Every Jeopardy Question Ever" found here. I typed in as an answer "New World Translation" and got the following response:

Search "New World Translation"

Jeopardy! Round, Double Jeopardy! Round, or Tiebreaker Round clues (0 results returned)

Final Jeopardy! Round clues (0 results returned)

Players (0 results returned)

Search  "most accurate translation of the Holy Scriptures."

Jeopardy! Round, Double Jeopardy! Round, or Tiebreaker Round clues (0 results returned)

Final Jeopardy! Round clues (0 results returned)

SECOND, the Research Department from "Jeopardy" put out a letter concerning this controversy which follows:

Dear Valued Viewer,

Thank you for your recent letter regarding a Jeopardy! clue. We are always glad to hear from our viewers.

The clue "What is the most accurate translation of the Holy Scriptures?" was never a clue on Jeopardy! Our database containing all our questions and answers does not have any such clue. Scripts of our games show no clues on that topic.

Our research on the origins of this "clue" has been traced to an internet rumor. We hope you continue to watch and enjoy Jeopardy!

Sincerely,

Jeopardy! Writers and Researchers

This blog will deal with the type of Clue that is valid on Jeopardy. By having a correct understanding of Jeopardy's policy on valid Clues you will see that the Clue: "The World's Most Accurate Bible Translation" OR "Something Similar" would violate Jeopardy policy and WOULD NOT have been used on their game show.

The show always begins with a valid Clue which MUST BE one whose Response would be a fact NOT IN DISPUTE. For example the Clue: "Oregon's most populace city" is a valid Jeopardy Clue since the Response, "What is Portland?" is the only possible CORRECT answer that a quick Google check of "List of Cities in Oregon" will verify. Example #2: Clue: "Home to the MLS team known as the Timbers." Response: "What is Portland?" Again, this is a valid Jeopardy Clue since the Response: "What is Portland?" is the only possible CORRECT answer that a quick Google check of "MLS Timbers" will verify.

Here is an example of an INVALID Jeopardy Clue: "The most Livable city in Oregon." It is an INVALID Jeopardy Clue since the Response, no matter what it is, would be disputed by someone or some group. What if the Response was, "What is Portland?" Certainly, some people living on the Oregon Coast might select Astoria or Coos Bay or Brookings as a more livable city than Portland. Other Oregonians might select Ashland, home of a Shakespeare Festival or Bend, gateway to many outdoor sports as more livable than Portland. In fact, there are many people who live in Portland who would disagree that  it is the most livable city in Oregon. They may not like dodging poop on the sidewalks or being accosted by aggressive panhandlers or having Portland named the unofficial home of ANTIFA, who takes it upon themselves to direct traffic in downtown Portland and assault reporters covering ANTIFA protest marches.

An OPINION CLUE generates  MANY DIFFERENT OPINION RESPONSES and thus is not a valid Jeopardy CLUE because there is no one Response that is universally accepted. The CLUE: "The most accurate Bible Translation?" OR "Something Similar" IS NOT A VALID JEOPARDY CLUE since the RESPONSE, no matter what it is, would NOT BE universally accepted. For proof that there IS NOT consensus that the "New World Translation" is the most accurate translation go here for the opinion of NT Greek Scholars concerning the accuracy of "The New World Translation." 

Also, there is a large group known as "King James Only" that would dispute the RESPONSE that "The New World Translation is the most accurate Bible translation." In addition, the Catholics use a "Catholic Bible" that contains 73 books and not just 66 found in the "New World Translation." The Episcopal Church has over a dozen (12) approved translations, none of which is the "New World Translation." 

CONCLUSION: Since the CLUE, "The most accurate Bible Translation" OR "Something Similar" is an OPINION CLUE and would generate a multitude of OPINION RESPONSES, none of which would be universally accepted, the CLUE would not be used on Jeopardy.

On to Final Jeopardy. CLUE: "This Bible's translation committee contained NO experts in Greek, Hebrew or Aramaic AND is the official Bible of only one religious group, the Jehovah's Witnesses AND was condemned by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association for inserting into their Bible's text their peculiar beliefs without justification from the Original Languages."

Final Jeopardy's correct Response:

"What is the

NEW WORLD TRANSLATION"

This Jeopardy controversy was put into a Power Point and is on YouTube here. The information from the Power Point was made into a blog here.

THE FINAL WORD ON: Did "Jeopardy" Endorse the NWT? HERE!