While Mayim's Away Vaccines Play

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PGage

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Jan 21, 2022, 10:05:09 PM1/21/22
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Is Jeopardy! Holding to its original hosting schedule? I noticed that they had an entire category of vaccine related answers this week, and I am wondering if they would have done that had Bialik been there. Or, were they trying to have it both ways, asserting that they will still be pro vaccine, but knowing they could avoid confrontation because she would be absent? They also had an answer this week the question for which was something like “What is the Big Bang?” Which promoted Ken to invoke Mayim, noting it was too bad she was not hosting.

They don’t call him “The Host of Jeopardy!” But these weeks have confirmed for me that he is the no brainer best choice for the job.
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two...@gmail.com

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Jan 23, 2022, 2:32:38 PM1/23/22
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Bialik never seemed to me to be one of those strident public anti-vaxxers. The little research I could be bothered to do shows that she’s deeply into the holistic wellness movement and she wrote a book and did interviews around 2009 saying she wasn’t following the vaccine schedule for her kids. A year and a half ago she said publicly that she would get and recommend other people get a COVID vaccination when it becomes available. More than anything, I don’t think SONY Studios is tiptoeing around any perceived sensitivities to vaccines.

I have been following Ken Jennings on Twitter for years and I remember him linking to articles during James Holzhauer’s run where reporters would ask Jennings about the run and Holzhauer’s strategy. Now during Amy Schneider’s run Jennings can talk to her about it every and point out when she overtakes former champions.

On Jan 21, 2022, at 10:05 PM, PGage <pga...@gmail.com> wrote:

Is Jeopardy! Holding to its original hosting schedule? I noticed that they had an entire category of vaccine related answers this week, and I am wondering if they would have done that had Bialik been there. Or, were they trying to have it both ways, asserting that they will still be pro vaccine, but knowing they could avoid confrontation because she would be absent? They also had an answer this week the question for which was something like “What is the Big Bang?” Which promoted Ken to invoke Mayim, noting it was too bad she was not hosting.

They don’t call him “The Host of Jeopardy!” But these weeks have confirmed for me that he is the no brainer best choice for the job.
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PGage

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Jan 23, 2022, 4:41:33 PM1/23/22
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I would not call her strident, but she has been critical of vaccines, and when that came up in the context of hosting, she made what to me was an odd and dubious defense - essentially “I’m not against COVID vaccines, just most of the other childhood vaccines that have saved millions of lives over the last 60 years.” I’m not sure the tone of her opposition is more important than the fact of it. If she came out against seat belts the fact that she did it politely would not really a point in her favor.

I think it would have been awkward (and interesting) if she had been reading those 5 vaccine clues this week, and I wonder if the producers would have put her in that position.

I don’t see a lot of commercials these days, but I did see one recently in which she is still using her scientific credentials to hype a supposed memory enhancing drug. I thought a court had banned that kind of advertising.

I will grant that I have found her more tolerable as host this Fall than I did during her auditions. When she comes back I will miss Ken, but it won’t be a disaster.

Kevin M.

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Jan 23, 2022, 7:00:46 PM1/23/22
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On Sun, Jan 23, 2022 at 1:41 PM PGage <pga...@gmail.com> wrote:
I would not call her strident, but she has been critical of vaccines, and when that came up in the context of hosting, she made what to me was an odd and dubious defense - essentially “I’m not against COVID vaccines, just most of the other childhood vaccines that have saved millions of lives over the last 60 years.” I’m not sure the tone of her opposition is more important than the fact of it. If she came out against seat belts the fact that she did it politely would not really a point in her favor.

I think it would have been awkward (and interesting) if she had been reading those 5 vaccine clues this week, and I wonder if the producers would have put her in that position.

I don’t see a lot of commercials these days, but I did see one recently in which she is still using her scientific credentials to hype a supposed memory enhancing drug. I thought a court had banned that kind of advertising.

There are “magic words” advertisers can avoid.  Users can be “shown to” have an increased memory, but it cannot be “proven to” be increased because of the drug. 

My theory is if you can remember to take a daily memory drug, you don’t need to take a daily memory drug. 



I will grant that I have found her more tolerable as host this Fall than I did during her auditions. When she comes back I will miss Ken, but it won’t be a disaster.

On Sun, 23 Jan 2022 at 11:32 AM <two...@gmail.com> wrote:
Bialik never seemed to me to be one of those strident public anti-vaxxers. The little research I could be bothered to do shows that she’s deeply into the holistic wellness movement and she wrote a book and did interviews around 2009 saying she wasn’t following the vaccine schedule for her kids. A year and a half ago she said publicly that she would get and recommend other people get a COVID vaccination when it becomes available. More than anything, I don’t think SONY Studios is tiptoeing around any perceived sensitivities to vaccines.

I have been following Ken Jennings on Twitter for years and I remember him linking to articles during James Holzhauer’s run where reporters would ask Jennings about the run and Holzhauer’s strategy. Now during Amy Schneider’s run Jennings can talk to her about it every and point out when she overtakes former champions.

On Jan 21, 2022, at 10:05 PM, PGage <pga...@gmail.com> wrote:

Is Jeopardy! Holding to its original hosting schedule? I noticed that they had an entire category of vaccine related answers this week, and I am wondering if they would have done that had Bialik been there. Or, were they trying to have it both ways, asserting that they will still be pro vaccine, but knowing they could avoid confrontation because she would be absent? They also had an answer this week the question for which was something like “What is the Big Bang?” Which promoted Ken to invoke Mayim, noting it was too bad she was not hosting.

They don’t call him “The Host of Jeopardy!” But these weeks have confirmed for me that he is the no brainer best choice for the job.
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Brad Beam

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Jan 23, 2022, 7:57:31 PM1/23/22
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From: tvor...@googlegroups.com [mailto:tvor...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of PGage

>I think it would have been awkward (and interesting) if she had been reading those 5 vaccine clues this week, and I wonder if the producers would have put her in that position.

 

Locally, it’s no different than watching refugee-from-Gray’s-vaccine-mandate Amanda Barren read the Tri-State’s latest Covid numbers or introduce an interview with county health officials at a vaccination drive on Nexstar’s WOWK.

 

_   _

|_>|_>  Brad Beam- Belle WV

|_>|_>  http://www.facebook.com/74bmw

 

PGage

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Jan 23, 2022, 8:37:37 PM1/23/22
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Right, but I think a court found that the product she hypes illegally used one of the magic words in previous advertisements. I guess they have modified their copy to stay between the lines, but I find it distasteful and unethical that she uses her scientific aroma - both from her TV career and actual credentials - to imply in general what they were spanked for saying explicitly. 

I’m still recovering from the Rams-Bucks game, but if I remember in a bit I will do what I ought to have done before bringing it up and try to find the references on this.

PGage

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Jan 23, 2022, 10:04:02 PM1/23/22
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The supplement (importantly, it’s not a drug) that Bialik shills for is called “Neuriva”. This Bloomberg article has the story on the lawsuit they settled:


https://news.bloomberglaw.com/product-liability-and-toxics-law/neuriva-brain-pill-8-million-class-deal-gets-judges-nod


Summary: Neuriva (by Reckitt Benckiser) settled a Class Action lawsuit that alleged they made deceptive claims about their pills. They agreed to stop using phrases “backed by science” and “clinically proven” in reference to the pills ability to improve brain performance, because there is no scientific or clinical proof it provides any such benefit. The company also agreed to stop saying Neuriva has been “shown,” or “clinically shown” to confer cognitive benefits.


The settlement was accepted by a Florida judge even though critics argue it does not go nearly far enough (I agree with the critics).


I guess the commercial I saw this week does not use any of the forbidden words/phrases, but the endorsement by Biolek, who officially is the Neuriva “Science Advisor” (https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/neuriva-partners-with-mayim-bialik-to-educate-and-empower-consumers-on-brain-health-301247710.html) and trades explicitly and implicitly on her actual and perceived scientific qualifications, creates the same harm as the banned words. I think this is sleazy and unethical p, and for me puts her in the same family as “Dr. Oz” and “Dr. Phil”.


This website, which supports Alzheimer’s patients and families, has a nice summary of the critical view of Neuriva (one psychologist they quote calls it Snake Oil) and other memory supplements:

https://www.beingpatient.com/does-neuriva-plus-work-brain-health-supplement/



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