Wheel of Fortune announcer Jim Thornton investigated after alleged pedophilia chatroom exposure on flight

Jim Thornton, the 61-year-old announcer for "Wheel of Fortune," was photographed on an American Airlines flight appearing to view a chatroom that authorities described as containing pedophilia-related messages. The images, released by a media outlet, show Thornton looking at a laptop screen for nearly an hour, with excerpts such as “A nice hangout for kids. Saw a couple of cute boys and a hot little girl.”

A fellow passenger alerted a flight attendant, who then notified law-enforcement officials. Officers met Thornton at the gate after the flight and questioned him before releasing him without arrest or charges.

Thornton’s attorney, Allison Hart, said in a letter that the TV personality mistakenly entered the site while seeking a suicide-prevention forum similar to 988lifeline.org. She explained that an acquaintance misdirected him to a site with a similar URL, lifeline.chat, which she described as a forum for individuals with pedophilic thoughts but not illegal content. > "When my client understood what the website was about, he left the page and has not visited since," Hart wrote.

Hart added that law-enforcement confirmed no crime occurred and that Thornton was free to go. Sony, which produces "Wheel of Fortune," confirmed Thornton’s suspension and said the show is being recast while a thorough investigation proceeds.