Coronavirus Concerns Prompt 'Jeopardy!', 'Wheel of Fortune' to Tape Without Live Audiences [View all]
“Jeopardy!” and “Wheel of Fortune” will not tape in front of live audiences in the near term, a person familiar with the situation tells Variety, as the continued spread of coronavirus poses a risk to guests as well as immunocompromised “Jeopardy!” host Alex Trebek, who last year was diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer.
Both Sony Pictures Television shows are currently scheduled to tape episodes through mid-April on the studio’s Culver City lot.
The studio’s cautiousness comes in response to several factors, per the source, including: Trebek’s health, since his condition puts him at greater risk of contracting the illness; the show’s live audience, which typically tends to skew older; and out-of-town audience members, many of whom travel by air to attend the taping.
ABC, NBC and CBS thus far have not changed their talk-show protocols, but concerns about coronavirus — or COVID-19, as it is also known — have been steadily hammering the industry.
https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/coronavirus-jeopardy-wheel-of-fortune-tape-without-live-audience-1203528383/
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