Who thinks that selection model for the show is unfair?

all the shows i know of nowadays go for that Central Casting, not just wheel

What makes someone qualified in your opinion? You'd rather have someone who would get stage fright and freeze up? Standing on that podium is night and day compared to playing at home. 
If they were going for only the most attractive people in the world, there's no way in he** I would've gotten on.

Let me explain myself. I think the format of TV Shows is not 'democratic'. It often descriminates against, let's say, someone who is very phisically unattractive, shy, nervous or has a terrible accent, voice, or other things that producers might not like. I believe that in 2016 the world must have a game where smart people, regardless of their physical or psychological traits, have a chance to make the best of their knowledge. Every day! I stress that. What would you think of a daily online knowledge-based tournament where anyone from anywhere can put a small entry fee and compete for real money (just like on TV Shows) against participants from all over the world.
A daily knowledge World Cup! Would't it be the greatest game in the world?

Hi smashwhammy , if you are asking me, then yes, I have listened. Do you think I missed something?

My sentiments exactly, Joe and Leanne. The CCs at "Wheel" (one of whom has been in that job since 1987-88) have been casting thousands of contestants, and it's not an easy process. The odds of even getting an audition are slim. From there, the CCs have to whittle them down further. You have to remember that television is a visual medium, so the players who make it on don't necessarily have to look like supermodels (God knows I don't), but they do need to look confident and act like they know what they are doing. If a player is having fun, being relaxed (even when the experience is scaring the crap out of him or her), and looking confident, the viewer is going to be having fun, too. Some people are just more comfortable speaking in front of others and looking NATURAL while doing so. Further, they have to show the enthusiasm...the desire to be there.

Now, let's say you are one of those people who can be natural in front of the camera and have a good time playing a game. The next step is whether or not you can actually play that game. As a test prep teacher, I know who does his or her homework and who does not. They show it in their execution of test problems and their understanding of test skills. Similarly, a CC knows when a potential player has done his or her homework by watching the show - they're the ones who know to watch the Used Letter Board, the ones who use the lingo of the show, and the ones who remember to enunciate letters, among others. Although some contestants do forget these things on stage, they happen. I don't expect my students to be right all the time, and neither do CCs.

This is where the intelligence argument comes into play. Although "Wheel" does get a reputation for being Merv's ugly stepchild (intellectually speaking), it actually requires a decent working knowledge of well-known people, places, things, sayings, quotes, activities, etc., and language skills. When I say "language skills," I don't mean speaking. I mean understanding words, letters, and letter patterns. Smart contestants utilize those tricks to their advantage.

However, Joe, Leanne, and I all agree that a great contestant, whether it's on "Wheel" or any other game show, is someone who strikes a balance between appearance, "game knowledge," and intelligence. Is that balance perfect? Not always. Is it there? In many contestants, it certainly is. The most intelligent people may actually be very dry and unentertaining on camera, or a happy-go-lucky contestant may call a lot of letters that clearly don't fit, when there are obvious letters available. Either way, that doesn't make for a good show. The selection process is a challenging one, so there's bound to be flaws. However, the selection system for "Wheel" and "Jeopardy," among others, is quite fair. Otherwise, the contestants chosen for those shows would not have been chosen.

As an aside, one little peeve you brought up is that you mentioned that people should be able to get on game shows, "regardless of physical or psychological" qualities. You do realize that disabled contestants have been on game shows regularly since the 1980s, if not longer? "The $100,000 Pyramid" regularly had weeks when blind contestants played. Deaf contestants on game shows have had sign-language interpreters. In 1992, an episode of "Family Double Dare" featured a contestant on each team who was confined to a wheelchair. One of "Jeopardy"'s most memorable contestants was a blind man, Eddie Timanus, who was able to clean house and win 5 games in a row. One of "Wheel"'s more recent memorable contestants was a young man named Trent, who was disabled (I'm not sure, but I think he had Tourette's). There have been countless others who have appeared on game shows whose disabilities weren't as visible, and they made for entertaining TV. How do I know? As someone who lives with ADD, I was one of them.

For the record, the OP posted the exact same topic over at JBoard. I smell a troll, personally.

So I'll be the one to call him out. konstava, how many times have you tried out for Wheel...or any show, for that matter? Do you feel you were wronged during the process, and if so, how? (And don't tell me "I didn't get picked.") Surely you wouldn't be asking these kinds of questions unless you've been through the process yourself.

i also had a hunch we were being played or that this guy was just rejected and upset

I had a feeling on the latter, but I think it's still good to at least get it out there that a lot of us view the selection process as a fair method at least for Wheel and J!.

Granted, I may be a bit biased since I got picked for Wheel, but I have yet to be picked for J! and I still think their process is as fair as you'll get when it comes to T.V. casting. 


Side note: I think me bombing the J! audition in 2012 though helped me learn how to improve a year later for the Wheel audition (I will say in my defense I was whacked in the head with a sign as this was during the NATO protests, so I did have a headache for half of the audition). 

people don't learn trivia just to make money, so you might be going about the smart thing all wrong

plus we have instances of overdoing your intellegence here in the states (Michael Larson on Press Your Luck, Terry Kneiss on The Price is Right, etc)