[quote name=\'clemon79\' post=\'132027\' date=\'Sep 18 2006, 04:59 PM\']
You'd think Standards and Practices would take umbrage with this, but I'm guessing they don't care until someone is actually standing in Contestant's Row.
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Exactly. Nobody has ever disputed that producers have the right to cast whomever they wish as contestants. Getting into Contestant's Row isn't a lottery-- you're specifically chosen by a producer, casting coordinator, or what-have-you. I see nothing unethical or shady about this. Feeding a contestant the correct retail price in advance, to "help" them out of Contestant's Row and into a pricing game, would be a completely different story.