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In most of the phoners I've done so far, the interviewer starts off by assuming that cheating does not and cannot go on in televised poker, or in countless hold'em ‘em tournaments that are now part of American culture.

This is not strictly true. One of the most undetectable forms of cheating is collusion or team play. It's well-known that many professional poker players are staked out of the same bankroll and enter the same tournaments. It is not unheard of that one member of the team will deliberately lose to his ally to give him more chips and propel him into the next round.

Team players can also exchange information through signals that give team members a significant edge over other players at the table. If one player knows another's hole cards, that's a piece of information that none of the other players have and is therefore an advantage. It may not make a difference in any particular hand, but in the long run, the information will pay off. Information can be transmitted by hand signals, gestures, chip placement, and how cards are mucked, among other methods.