Wordle changes answer amid abortion rights debate
The New York Times has swiftly changed the answer to its daily Wordle puzzle out of fear it would be interpreted politically amid the debate on abortion rights in the US.
The wildly-popular browser-based game, which was bought by the masthead in January, gives users six attempts to guess a five letter word each day which is chosen in advance and at random by a computer program.
On Monday, the Times scrambled to change Monday’s word which was “fetus”, using the American spelling.
The word could have been seen as a controversial choice given the recent leaked report of a draft decision from the Supreme Court to overturn two laws that grant women the right to access abortions.
In a message to readers on the same day, the newspaper said the word choice was “entirely unintentional and a coincidence”.
“At New York Times Games, we take our role seriously as a place to entertain and escape, and we want Wordle to remain distinct from the news,” the message said.
Monday’s word was changed and a spokesman said a “vast majority” of users saw that, save some who hadn’t refreshed their page and saw “fetus” instead.
Many New Zealand users reported seeing “fetus”, according to the NZ Herald.
However, Cohen wouldn’t say whether the Times received any complaints about the word choice.
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