Today is the last class of our current four class set. We will start class with a casual conversation. We will only have listening material today. I have included a transcript. Please follow the transcript while listening to the audio. Finally- I have updated your google doc. There you will find a new writing assignment.
MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
The Powerball jackpot has now increased to an estimated $1.5 billion. That's the second biggest prize in Powerball history. However, the research suggests that state-run lotteries prey on low-income people. NPR's Jonathan Franklin has the story.
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UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: It's time to play America's favorite jackpot game. This is Powerball.
JOHNATHAN FRANKLIN, BYLINE: Until someone is lucky enough to match all six winning numbers to win the jackpot, lottery players across the country will continue to spend their dollars in hopes of beating the odds and winning big. But the drive to get rich off a winning ticket has a dark side. Critics argue that lotteries oftentimes negatively impact low-income and minority groups.
LES BERNAL: State lotteries are the most neglected example of systemic racism in the United States than any other issue or problem, I should say, in our country.
FRANKLIN: That's Les Bernal, the national director for Stop Predatory Gambling, an advocacy nonprofit organization. He tells NPR that through marketing and advertising, state lotteries have no regulation to their practices that oftentimes affect low-income communities, which are made up of primarily Black and brown people. In recent years, massive jackpots for lottery games like Powerball and Mega Millions have become the norm. And lottery officials even adjusted their game rules and ticket prices this year for its players, adding an additional drawing day to build larger prizes and to boost sales.
But with the new changes and more drawings weekly, low-income communities and minorities are continuing to become the subject of predatory gambling. Research shows that in 2021 alone, Americans spent nearly $105 billion on lottery tickets, with the average adult spending roughly $320 a year on tickets. In a nationwide investigation by the University of Maryland's Howard Center for Investigative Journalism, researchers found that state lottery retailers are disproportionately grouped in lower-income communities. And in some states, these retailers exist primarily in Black and Latino neighborhoods.
TIMOTHY FONG: What we're talking about are, you know, gambling industry practices that are clearly designed to take advantage of vulnerable or adverse communities.
FRANKLIN: That's Timothy Fong, the co-director of the Gambling Studies Program at the University of California Los Angeles.
FONG: Why are you selling a potentially addictive product that we know doesn't generate wealth or income for anybody?
FRANKLIN: He says that to tackle the issue of predatory gambling, government retailers must first address the question of who is responsible for stopping these practices. Whether it's the retailers or the states themselves, someone just needs to take action. Jonathan Franklin, NPR News.
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