'Big Brother' is an international phenomenon, with versions in the U.K., Germany, Spain, Sweden and Brazil, among other countries. But the American version is unique, according to host Julie Chen and executive producer Allison Grodner, who spoke about the show Thursday on 'The Early Show' (weekdays, 7AM on CBS). The voting is different, and surprisingly, the relationships between contestants have been more chaste.

When the U.S. version of the show started, it followed the pattern of having viewers vote weekly to evict contestants. That soon changed. "I found out that Americans, we don't like conflict," said Chen. "Americans voted out the most interesting players in the game." Grodner said they had to take the power of the vote away from the viewers to keep the show interesting, ultimately giving that power to the houseguests.

As Big Brother fans patiently await the press conferences and cast announcements for the new season, executive producer Allison Grodner has already been talking to the internet.

Now, what she has been saying interests me. As a long time fan of both the feeds and the show as well as being privy to the internet fan reaction, I've seen folks almost demanding a return of actual strangers in the house and more diversity in casting. Will this be our year? Read on past the jump for the video.

Fans of Big Brother 8 have noted many changes this year with Allison Grodner at the production helm instead of Arnold Shapiro. Starting with a rather odd Alice in Wonderland theme which hasn't quite all come together in the long run to iffy casting (okay, Amber) issues, it's been a most unusual season for long-time viewers.

From extremely crude treatment of others by one houseguest to another who really came across as not being stable enough to be on the show, it's been one brouhaha after another. The latest question from the fans is -- where is the footage of the sequester house?

Big Brother 8 fans, both ones who watch the show and those who are into the 24/7 live feeds from inside the house, have questions on their minds this season. We're talking a lot of questions.

In past seasons, the executive producer was Arnold Shapiro with Allison Grodner at his side. This season is the first one in which Allison Grodner is the executive producer. And, it hasn't been an easy season. The show has a cast of colorful characters, to say the least. There have been dramatic swings of power in the house, as well as drama-filled houseguests.

Allison Grodner was interviewed by EW.com, and I'd like to delve into some of the issues discussed as I know they're also on your mind. Beware -- there are spoilers for tonight's show in both the article linked and after the jump.