'I screwed up': 'Jeopardy!' star Ken Jennings apologizes for past social media posts

WASHINGTON (WJLA) – "Jeopardy!" champion and guest host Ken Jennings used Twitter to apologize for what he calls "insensitive" posts he's made on the social media platform in the past.

In a thread posted Wednesday, Jennings said some of the tweets in question were jokes in his head that didn't translate well in writing.

Jennings admitted, "I've definitely tweeted some unartful and insensitive things. Sometimes they worked as jokes in my head and I was dismayed to see how they read on screen."

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The record holder also said those who were offended by the tweets were in the right, saying:

Sometimes I said dumb things in a dumb way and I want to apologize to people who were (rightfully!) offended. It wasn't my intention to hurt anyone, but that doesn't matter: I screwed up, and I'm truly sorry.

Jennings did not address any specific tweets. The entire thread is available here.

The posts come a week and a half before 'Jeopardy!' airs its final episode with late host Alex Trebek, who died Nov. 8 after his battle with pancreatic cancer. Jennings will be the first interim host as the show searches for a new permanent host.

The final episodes with Trebek are set to air starting Monday, Jan. 4 through Friday, Jan. 8. Jennings's episodes start Jan. 11.