New York Times Changes Today’s Wordle #324 Answer Amid Abortion Controversy

Topline

Wordle fans around the world were left confused on Monday after the popular puzzle offered up two different solutions for answer #324, a move the game’s owner, the New York Times, said was intended to keep it “distinct from the news.”

Key Facts

The Times replaced the word “fetus” as the intended solution of Wordle #324 on Monday.

Some users may still see the “outdated” answer, which appears to be “closely connected to a major recent news event,” the publisher warned.

This connection is “entirely unintentional and a coincidence,” the Times explained in a statement, adding that Monday’s answer was “loaded into Wordle last year.”

While the Times did not explicitly state the word it was changing or the news event it was connected to, the substitution comes a week after Politico published a leaked Supreme Court opinion revealing most justices to be in favor of overturning Roe v. Wade, a landmark ruling guaranteeing the right to abortion across the country.

Key Background

In the space of a few months, Wordle went from a game with just a few hundred daily players to millions every day in the first months of 2022. The Times purchased the viral puzzle in late January, reportedly for a seven-figure sum, though the transition has not been smooth. Players complained of harder games, data—including treasured winning streaks—was lost in transit and there were fears the company would put Wordle behind the paywall it uses for other games. The company has denied making the game harder and said Wordle would “initially” remain free to new and existing users. Since purchasing the game, the Times has removed numerous words it deems sensitive or could cause issues among users where words are spelt differently and issues of multiple solutions being offered up to users have occurred before. The Times said it is “difficult to change words” already loaded into the game and it is “busy revamping” the technology so everybody receives the same word.

Further Reading

Here’s Why Today’s Wordle #241 Has Two Different Answers (Forbes)

These Wordle Spin-Offs Are Riding Coattails Of Popular Game (Forbes)

No, The New York Times did not make Wordle harder (Verge)

Here’s Where Abortion Rights Will Be On The Midterm Ballot In November (Forbes)

How Americans Really Feel About Abortion: The Sometimes Surprising Poll Results As Supreme Court Reportedly Set To Overturn Roe V. Wade (Forbes)