According to reports from Page Six and TMZ, a fellow passenger on American Airlines Flight 1276 from Charlotte, North Carolina, to Los Angeles photographed Thornton’s screen and alerted airline staff. The images reportedly showed a conversation that included references to children and pedophilia.
After the plane landed, law enforcement officials questioned Thornton but did not arrest or charge him.
Thornton’s attorney, Allison Hart, said he accessed the website by mistake. In a letter obtained by Page Six, Hart said Thornton has been involved in suicide-prevention advocacy since the death of a close family member and regularly visits online forums related to suicide prevention.
According to Hart, Thornton was directed to lifeline.chat by an acquaintance who mistakenly presented it as a suicide-prevention forum similar to 988lifeline.org. She said Thornton left the site after realizing its subject matter and has not returned.
Hart also said Thornton never viewed, downloaded or consumed child pornography and that the website itself is not illegal.
Sony Pictures Television confirmed Thornton’s suspension but did not provide further details.
“We have recently been made aware of allegations concerning Jim Thornton,” a company spokesperson said. “He has been suspended from Wheel of Fortune and we are recasting while we conduct a thorough investigation.”
Thornton joined Wheel of Fortune in 2011. He has continued as the show’s announcer since Ryan Seacrest replaced longtime host Pat Sajak in 2024, alongside co-host Vanna White.
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