A proposed bill would treat it the way Congress has treated tobacco products.

By The Deseret News Editorial Board

Paul Tonko, a Democrat representing a congressional district that includes Albany and Schenectady in New York state, is nearly alone in his crusade to stem what he calls the “out of control” proliferation of sports betting advertisements.

He has one co-sponsor of his Betting on our Future Act — fellow Democrat John Sarbanes, who represents a district near Baltimore.

This is a shame, because more of the nation’s representatives should be concerned about a rise in sports gambling advertising that Tonko and others say is predatory and that is harming the nation’s rising generation.

But movements often begin small. Some recent probing reporting by The Wall Street Journal has laid bare other problems with the gambling industry, including a recent story that suggested online gambling companies may be using artificial intelligence to target people who potentially could be problem gamblers, using perks that would entice them to spend, and consequently lose, even more.

This reporting, and Tonko’s bill, are good starting points for what ought to be a deep probe and discussion about how to regulate an industry that, as even casual observers of televised sporting events can see, is dominating commercial breaks with promises of easy money.

A recent story in the Guardian noted how DraftKings had hired celebrities to help promote something it calls a “free bet” for gamblers. “Only the small print (displayed in the last seven seconds) explained it was impossible to withdraw winnings from such a ‘non-cashable’ wager,” the newspaper said.

Tonko’s bill seeks to put an end to all that. Among other things, it would ban online sports betting companies from advertising during live sporting events. Those companies could no longer accept credit cards, a form of payment that often tempts gambler into spending more than they can afford.

It also would prevent those companies from using AI to track the habits of gamblers.

https://www.deseret.com/opinion/2024/04/05/regulate-sports-gambling-companies/