NBC News has been blasted for a “bizarre” tweet about Jeopardy! champion Mattea Roach – leaving fans furious.
The Canadian tutor has just completed her 16th winning day on the game show, amassing a total jackpot of $320,081.
Mattea, 23, qualified for the NBC show’s Tournament of Champions after taking home another $34,000 on Friday evening.
NBC took to Twitter to announce her continued winning streak, but left some fans frustrated with their choice of wording.
Instead of using her name, the broadcaster opted to call the quiz winner “a lesbian tutor” in a headline about her TV appearances.
“The 23-year-old lesbian tutor from Toronto has amassed a total of $320,081, the most by a Canadian contestant in Jeopardy! history,” the tweet read.
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A number of fans quickly lashed out at the “bizarre” choice of wording involving Mattea‘s sexuality – which was irrelevant to her Jeopardy! performance.
“What a bizarre thing to include. No one cares if she’s a lesbian. Shame on NBC news. It doesn’t matter one iota,” one wrote.
A second chimed in: “What the hell does her sexuality have to do with anything? Does it somehow improve her ability to answer?”
“Have you highlighted the sexual orientation of other successful guests on the show?” he continued to ask.
Others poked fun at the tweet, joking it sounded like “lesbian tutor” was her job title – and that she specifically taught lesbians.
“It is good that this Jeopardy contestant helps so many lesbians with their studies,” one jibed in a hilarious tweet.
A second added: “She could probably use the money, her business model of only tutoring lesbians and is probably not sustainable.”
“She tutors lesbians and will remain nameless,” a third concluded.
Mattea told Jeopardy! following her 12th consecutive win that it had been a “crazy season of streaks” throughout the year.
Noting Jeopardy! champion Amy Schneider, she said: “I was fully thinking, you know, Amy might still be here.
“If it’s not Amy, there’s going to be some other super champion that’s just going to knock me out game one. And then, I guess what I didn’t realize is maybe I could become the super champion.”
Amy capped a 40-game winning streak earlier this year, taking home a huge $1,382,800 – as the top female earner in Jeopardy! history.
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The star – who became a transgender icon following the show – came in second behind Ken Jennings, who ended a 74-game streak in 2004.
It comes after Jeopardy! fans slammed Ken Jenning’s “lawless” game that he “lost all control over”, seeing Mattea win a 16th time.
