'Jeopardy!' Alex Trebek, Who Are Canadians?

BEN HIDER

No more Canadians on ‘Jeopardy!’ except for host Alex Trebek - Who’s the hoser who banned Canadians from “Jeopardy!” eh?

“Jeopardy!” is no longer accepting contestants from north of the border, even though host Alex Trebek was born and raised in Ontario.

The country’s online privacy laws now bar Canadians from taking the American quiz show’s application exam, which is posted on its website.

“At this time we are precluded from accepting registration information from Canadian residents,” reads the show’s updated FAQ page as of last week. “We are currently evaluating this matter.”

America’s most popular quiz show, where all answers come in the form of a question, has an application process where potential contestants take an online test, and those who do well are entered into a potential contestant pool.

Host Trebek confirmed in a statement that Canada’s online privacy laws are keeping his home country’s contestants off the show.

“It is true that for the most recent ‘Jeopardy!’ contestant tryouts, Canadians were precluded from taking the online test, since the show must now comply with new rules set down by the Canadian government,” Trebek wrote.

Yet Canadians already accepted into the contestant pool within the last 18 months will still be able to play, including one who will appear on Monday night’s broadcast, and two more who already taped shows airing in March.

“We have had many Canadians as contestants throughout the history of the show, and we hope that will continue, because Canadians make great game show contestants,” Trebek added. “We look forward to having more try out as soon as we are sure we can comply with all Canadian online privacy laws.”

Just what those laws entail isn’t being shared by the parties involved. The Toronto Star cites two legal experts who suggest Canada’s anti-spam legistration enacted in July 2014 could be to blame, which “forbids companies from emailing citizens without their express or implied permission.” Penalties can cost up to $10 million.

Canada also enacted the Digital Privacy Act last summer that regulates how personal information is collected, used and disclosed online. The Star’s requests sent to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission and Industry Canada weren’t answered.

“Jeopardy!” producers are only offering an official statement that reads: “As international laws governing how information is shared over the internet are ever-changing and complex, we are currently investigating how we can accept registrations from potential Canadian contestants. The Jeopardy! Adult, Teen, and College tests have already taken place this year, and we are making every effort to find a solution before the next round of testing is available.”

This sudden disqualification of a single country is unprecedented in game show history.

“Nothing like this has happened before that I know of,” says Carrie Grosvenor, an Ontario writer and About.com’s resident Game Shows Expert. “Most of the other American game shows have been closed to Canadians from the start, so this news from ‘Jeopardy!’ is surprising.”

But she doesn’t see the conflict with Canada’s online privacy laws affecting fellow CBS game show “The Price is Right,” which also accepts Canadians, because there is no online screening process. “The Price is Right” contestants show up for a taping, and a lucky few are selected from the audience.

Fans on both sides of the border are outraged.

“Canadians no longer eligible for ‘Jeopardy!’ That will be Bummer for $2000 Alex,” wrote Jim Cornish on the game show’s Facebook page.

“I’ll take ‘Game Show Ignorance’ for $10,” agreed Ken Watson. “I’m no Canadian, but I’m calling this utter BS on Jeopardy’s part.”

Canadian and "NY1" news anchor Pat Kiernan, who was in Canada when the story broke last week, was just as surprised.

"It seems like an unintended consequence on both sides," he told the Daily News. "The show has a strong audience in Canada, and Alex (Trebek) obviously enjoys the Canadian topics they include into the program."

And Kiernan, who's expressed interest in hosting the game show once Trebek retires, is certain his countrymen will be competing on the program again in no time.

"If a future episode gave the clue, 'The year Canadians regained their eligibility to try out for 'Jeopardy!' - I'm pretty sure the correct response will prove to be 'What is 2016?'" he said.