Jeopardy! this week will feature another guest host filling in, as the popular game show is still in search of someone to fill the role permanently.
In previous weeks, viewers have seen Jeopardy! champion Ken Jennings and Super Bowl-winning quarterback Aaron Rodgers take on the hosting duties.
Now, they’ll turn to a familiar face from the world of weekly news reports. So who is hosting Jeopardy! this week as of May 3?
Bill Whitaker is the seventh guest host for Jeopardy
From May 3 through May 14, viewers will see Bill Whitaker taking over as guest host on the daily trivia show. Whitaker is a correspondent for 60 Minutes, the weekly news program that runs on CBS but has indicated he and his wife are big fans of the show.
Whitaker told the Washington Post he was surprised at how much coverage the show and who is hosting gets. He said he was surprised at how much it’s talked about beyond him just hosting the show.
“I truly did think, silly me, that I was going to be a Jeopardy! guest host and carry on with my life as usual. But these hosts: They’re gossiped about, they’re tweeted about, they’re in People magazine, the Hollywood Reporter. … I had no idea that this was going to be this wild and crazy,” Whitaker said, per Washington Post.
In a video for Jeopardy! (below), Whitaker shared one of his favorite Alex Trebek moments, a time when he saw Trebek at the Hollywood Bowl. Other people also noticed Trebek as he was going to his seat, and the beloved host ended up receiving a standing ovation.
Asked about why he decided to take on the guest hosting role, Whitaker said he not only loves the show, but it also works out well with his current career choice.
“When it came possible for me to be the host, I thought, ‘Well, there’s no other show I’d rather do.’ There’s no show that would work with being a journalist that I could come in and actually have fun and not walk away and go, “Ooh, I just did X show or what? No, it’s Jeopardy!’” Whitaker shared in the video below.
Whitaker is 69 years old and hails from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Hobart College grad has a history degree, and also holds a Boston University master’s degree in African American studies. In 1978, Whitaker also attended the University of California, Berkley’s graduate program for journalism.
He first started working with 60 Minutes as of March 2014, and has been part of the weekly program ever since then. Whitaker previously worked in journalism positions with KQED in San Francisco, WBTC in Charlotte, and as a CBS News Tokyo correspondent.
Now he’ll read answers from the digital gameboard to contestants and let them know if they’ve given the correct response, in the form of a question, of course.
Other hosts included Cooper, Couric, and Jennings
Whitaker won’t be the first individual coming from the journalism field to the Jeopardy! hosting gig. Among the show’s previous guest hosts were Katie Couric and Anderson Cooper. As mentioned, Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, and all-time greatest Jeopardy! champion Ken Jennings have also filled in as the show’s host.
Other hosts among the seven Jeopardy! guest hosts include Mike Richards and Dr. Mehmet Oz, as the producers continue to look for a permanent host to take on the role. Fans have had varying reactions to each of the guest hosts online, but as one can expect, replacing an all-time icon is a tough bit of work.
Earlier this year, reports surfaced indicating that Jennings could be the next host for the show. Jennings hosted in February as the first host to take over following the passing of the legendary Alex Trebek. In a tweet, Jennings thanked the viewers for their patience during his six weeks hosting the show.
Jeopardy! is currently in its 37th season of syndication. The show lost longtime host Alex Trebek in 2020, after his lengthy battle with pancreatic cancer. Trebek was 80 years old at the time and had hosted the popular quiz show since 1984.