A talent search by Oprah Winfrey has taken a confusing turn, thanks to online voting. Ms. Winfrey’s forthcoming cable channel, OWN, has been holding online and in-person casting calls for “Your OWN Show: Oprah’s Search for the Next TV Star,” a reality show that will have its premiere next year. Last week the search was tainted by allegations from fans of the top two online candidates, Zach Anner and Phyllis Wick-Turner, that the other side had stuffed the online ballot box. Some even suggested that Ms. Winfrey was behind it. The allegations, picked up by the news media, prompted a channel spokesperson to say in a statement that no “contestant has been favored in this competition,” but that an investigation would be undertaken and that all votes would be verified twice. The five most popular online contestants will go before a casting director, but only one is guaranteed a spot on the reality show, though OWN could choose to add more than one. A total of 10 in-person and online contestants will vie for a spot; eventually the show’s winner will be hired by OWN. By Sunday, Mr. Anner had accumulated two million more votes than Ms. Wick-Turner.