Popular trivia show Jeopardy! is receiving backlash for a question whose answer ruffled feathers on Twitter.
Under the category "Where's that Church?," contestants were asked to name the location of the Church of the Nativity, believed to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ.
When contestant Katie Needle buzzed to answer that the church was located in Palestine, which was deemed incorrect and cost $200 of her prize money.
Competitor Jack McGuire then answered that the church was in Israel, which was judged to be correct.
Watch below.
We would like to express our disappointment toward @Jeopardy for their blatant disregard for Palestinian sovereignt… https://t.co/VYPJ5b61nV— SJP Chicago (@SJP Chicago)1578774321.0
Bethlehem—the city which boasts the Church of the Nativity—is located on the West Bank, a Palestinian territory occupied by Israel since 1967. The land is referred to by the United Nations as "Occupied Palestinian Territories."
People weren't happy about the way the answers unfolded.
Unacceptable!! Bethlehem is in the Palestinian territories which Israel illegally occupies (Katie Needle got the co… https://t.co/hDFQ1MeAQK— Omar Baddar (@Omar Baddar)1578716250.0
Since the residents of Bethlehem don’t have voting rights in Israel, did Alex Trebek and @Jeopardy just declare Isr… https://t.co/qw2PaA1KV2— TURTLE ISLAND TO PALESTINE (@TURTLE ISLAND TO PALESTINE)1578760797.0
@Jeopardy you have lost a lifetime viewer. Completely unacceptable that you deny that the Church of the Nativity is… https://t.co/20NMAX5xBO— Bassem Nasir (@Bassem Nasir)1578701987.0
Hey #jeopardy , the Church of the Nativity is in Bethlehem, which is in Palestine, as contestant Katie correctly an… https://t.co/Kxcw7TJnHe— Bassam Abed (@Bassam Abed)1578701985.0
@OmarBaddar @Jeopardy This is outrageous. If “Israel” had been the answer, it would have been bad enough. But the f… https://t.co/PMqbENDEMS— James J. Zogby (@James J. Zogby)1578775231.0
I’ll take Israel is erasing the history of Palestine for $200 @Jeopardy https://t.co/kWhZ5ggMwf— Janean👑 (@Janean👑)1578799443.0
Would like to send ❤ to Katie first . Hey @Jeopardy - the Church of Nativity is in Bethlehem, which is located in… https://t.co/3okz7xH8FU— Palestine Alqadi (@Palestine Alqadi)1578758719.0
Needle herself took to Twitter to respond to a fan's commendation.
@SanaSaeed Thanks! Palestine should be free 🇵🇸— Katie Needle (@Katie Needle)1578718383.0
The $200 she lost for her answer was later restored.
The book Middle Eastern History: from the Sumerians to the Ottoman Empire and Today's Nation States is available here.