“What is Macon” was an answer on Jeopardy! this week. Did the contestants get it right?
Tuesday night’s episode of “Jeopardy!” featured something familiar to Middle Georgians.
The category was “5-Letter Places,” the prize was $400 and the clue was a no-brainer for Maconites.
On the screen, it read:
“The fourth-largest city in Georgia. It’s home to Mercer University.”
“What is Athens?” a contestant named Tracy answered.
However, another contestant, Erica, quickly buzzed in.
“What is Macon?” she answered. And $400 was added to her total.
So, how did Macon even make the cut?
The writers of “Jeopardy!” have their work cut out for them, as they have to think of two to three categories, each with five clues each day. This is the job of writers Billy Wisse and Michele Loud.
According to the show, “Each season, the writers produce a total of 230 games; that comes out to 14,030 clues per season,” so that’s a lot of writing!
Steps in the writing process:
Come up with new ideas. This is where Billy and Michele sit down and brainstorm together.
Check the ideas and edit them if needed. This step typically introduces researchers to fact check.
Make sure the game board has various levels of difficulty and fun. This involves checking to see if clues are not only academic, but also reference pop culture and lifestyle topics.
Go to a “roundtable meeting.” This is a discussion of the categories and clues to find potential issues or questions.
Last, but not least, are more revisions — because it wouldn’t be a writing process without more editing.
Check your local television listings for “Jeopardy!” air dates and times.
The full episode featuring Macon is available on Youtube.
