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'Jeopardy' contestant's voice causes uproar

Posted at 4:19 PM, Nov 24, 2015
and last updated 2015-11-24 19:19:32-05

Monday night’s episode of “Jeopardy,” as always, featured three highly-intelligent contestants, but one in particular stole the spotlight.

But it had nothing to do with her intelligence or winning streak as one might assume – it was all about her voice.

 
Laura Ashby is the culprit who caused the social media uproar, and her “upspeak”— inflecting up at the end of her sentences -- is to blame.  The Vanderbilt and Yale educated law associate first appeared on the show Nov. 6, so some viewers knew what to expect.
 
But that didn’t stop the Internet from quickly reacting with a combination of humor, irritation and even complete anger.
 
Meanwhile, some online troll even created a Twitter account dedicated to Ashby’s voice.
 
But is Ashby really to blame for the annoying inflection? 
 
The Huffington Post explains that upspeak typically happens when a person is unsure or unconfident, noting, “The use of upspeak on ‘Jeopardy’ makes perfect sense, considering contestants are answering questions to win money, something that's sure to make anyone uneasy.”