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The real winners and losers in America's lottery obsession
The lottery ticket display behind the counter at College Convenience on Huntington Avenue. (Jesse Costa/WBUR)
Listen
47:24
Americans spend almost $100 billion on state lotteries annually.
That’s more money than you spend on books, sports tickets, video games, music and movie tickets combined.
A few big winners, a lot of losers. Including every state that relies on lottery revenue.
So where does the rest of the money go?
Today, On Point: The real winners and losers in America’s lottery obsession.
Guests
Jonathan D. Cohen, historian. Author of For a Dollar and a Dream: State Lotteries in Modern America. Program director of American Institutions, Society and the Public Good at the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. (@JonathanDCohen1)
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Related Reading
Next Big Idea Club: “For A Dollar and A Dream: State Lotteries in Modern America” — “Americans spent roughly $98 billion on lottery tickets last year. For reference, that’s more than Americans spent on cigarettes, coffee, or smartphones.”
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
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