Pennsylvanian legislator unimpressed with CSIG poll

Pennsylvania Representative John Payne, chairman of the state House Gaming Oversight Committee, has joined a number of other political and industry personalities in casting doubts on the credibility of a recent survey purporting to show that most Pennsylvanians are against online gambling legalisation in the state.

The auto-phone poll was conducted by Republican Party-leaning Harper Polling, which was commissioned by the Sheldon Adelson-funded Coalition to Stop Internet Gambling and has been accused of framing the questions in such a way as to achieve a particular response .

Very questionable statements used by Harper in the poll include “online gambling is designed to replace people with computers;” “online gambling is a job killer that does not involve any local community investment;” and “legalized online gambling in Pennsylvania will make it easy for children to be exposed to and participate in gambling, since it is nearly impossible to prevent minors from gambling online.”

Several reports have also pointed to the small (513) sample and the polling company’s land-line auto phone survey system which excludes the views of younger demographics, which rely almost entirely on mobile devices.

Speaking to the publication The Morning Call this week, Rep. Payne commented:

“I don’t hold much credibility to the survey because of the way it was done. The entire poll is designed and orchestrated to give the answers they want.”

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