LOS ANGELES—Producer Mike Richards stepped down from his brief tenure as host of “Jeopardy!” citing the controversy over “past incidents and comments.” Richards was chosen last week as the successor to Alex Trebek, a decision that was seen as divisive from the beginning after the show had embarked on a broad search that included actors, sports figures, journalists, and celebrities. Earlier this week, a report on the website The Ringer revealed demeaning comments about women, the homeless, and others that Richards had made on a 2013-14 podcast. The clips were removed online after the report was posted. “Over the last several days it has become clear that moving forward as host would be too much of a distraction for our fans and not the right move for the show,” Richards said in a note to the “Jeopardy!” staff on Friday. “As such, I will be stepping down as host effective immediately. …