Sony Pictures Television said last week that it had fired Wheel of Fortune announcer Jim Thornton after reviewing an incident that was said to have occurred on an American Airlines plane in May 2026, according to The Daily Mail. Thornton, 61, was allegedly captured on camera by another traveler appearing to look at Lifeline.chat, a website its organizers have called a support chat room for people attracted to children and adolescents.
The studio said Friday that Thornton’s job with the program had been ended at once, following a short suspension. TMZ reported that the photos were taken during a trip from North Carolina to Los Angeles and that the time stamps suggested he appeared to stay in the chat for at least 57 minutes while dressed in a Wheel of Fortune jacket.
