A Wheel of Fortune contestant’s big bonus round moment turned into a major controversy — and it’s all because of a phrase that feels stuck in the past.
On the August 20 rerun of the May 21 episode, Amy Johnston came just one puzzle short of walking away with an extra $40,000. But when the answer was revealed, fans couldn’t believe what they saw.
The bonus round followed the usual format. Johnston received the standard letters — R, S, T, L, N, and E — then selected her own picks: G, C, M, and O. After the letters appeared on the board, the puzzle for the category “What Are You Doing?” looked like this:
_ _ _ _ NG T O _ ER NO_
Johnston threw out several guesses under pressure but couldn’t crack the code. With the clock running out, she finally admitted, “I’ve got nothing.”
Then host Ryan Seacrest flipped the card and revealed the correct answer: “Faxing it over now.”
Johnston stared in disbelief. “I don’t even know what faxing means!” she said with a laugh.
That one word — faxing — instantly lit up social media, where fans didn’t hold back.
“Seriously? Who even says that anymore? My grandma does, and she’s 90!” one viewer wrote on YouTube. Another added, “When was the last time ANYONE used a fax machine? That’s ancient.”
A third fan commented, “That’s not fair at all. How is that even relevant in 2025?”
The backlash didn’t stop there. Many viewers argued that the show should update its puzzles to reflect modern language. “Just make the answer ‘emailing it now,’ and we’re good,” another fan joked.
Despite the frustration, Johnston didn’t walk away empty-handed. She had already dominated the earlier rounds and took home $28,539 in winnings. Still, losing out on that extra $40,000 over what many call an “outdated phrase” left fans outraged.
This isn’t the first time Wheel of Fortune has sparked debate over its word choices, but this puzzle has reignited the conversation about keeping the game relevant for a new generation of players.
As one viewer summed it up: “Fax machines? What is this — 1995?”