Subject: Barstool Sportsbook
From: zonker@barstool.com
Date: 1/26/2023, 9:26 AM
To: loretta.lillios@massgaming.gov, eileen.obrien@massgaming.gov
CC: rovell@actionnetworkhq.com, hayden.bird@globe.com, kevin.wolff@xlmedia.com, stevebittenbender@casino.org
BCC: s

I've been watching the January 3rd and 4th (2023) Massachusetts Gaming Commission meetings regarding licensing for PSI,
a Penn entertainment subsidiary, doing business as Barstool SportsBook, and it seems as if the commissioners are missing a major point.

Penn performed due diligence before investing in Barstool Sports. They knew exactly what they were buying.

https://billypenn.com/2020/02/24/barstool-sports-new-pennsylvania-investor-says-no-more-harassment-will-the-bro-brand-follow-suit/

Penn was aware of the brand's history, and what the brand stands for, before buying it. They surely knew Portnoy and Katz had romanticized, and built an image of being, reckless gamblers and Penn had to know about the myriad other issues as well.
They didn't just know what they were buying, they knew what they were going to use the brand for as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqUE15-SkLo&t=1013s

https://www.mediamatters.org/barstool-sports/barstool-sports-cesspool-misogyny-and-bigotry (a meticulous
compilation of Barstool Sports controversies, a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the brand)

Penn didn't buy Barstool Sports in spite of the suitability issues, they bought it because of them. The issues have always been
what defined the brand. Penn could have found other personalities to promote a new brand, but they chose 2 guys whose
fans have been taught to see reckless gaming as macho and misogyny and bigotry as humorous.

No amount of lip service about responsible gaming will counterbalance Portnoy and Katz being the face of the Sportsbook,
especially in Massachusetts, where the brand's history is the deepest and its image most entrenched.

Penn/PSI seem to believe issuing some mea culpas, promising to more completely monitor content and spending some marketing
money on virtue signaling responsible gaming ads should allow them to continue harvesting Barstool Sport's reckless base. Of course
they said they were satisfied guardrails were in place almost 3 yrs ago (see first link above), how has that worked out?

There is also Barstool Sport's influence on younger demographics. I hope the commission reviews the due diligence done by
Penn prior to investing, and considers any demographic information Penn had before the purchase.

Barstool Sports is very popular in High Schools https://twitter.com/StooliesUnited/followers

Dave Portnoy is still courting that audience, he has been doing a podcast since Oct 2020 with a popular young social media star
who won't turn 21 until next week and has a young audience. https://www.barstoolsports.com/shows/134/Bffs this after the investment by Penn and the announcement of their Sportsbook

Penn/PSI touts its "unique" model to the commission as helping to bring in a younger demographic
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BiTXa0NpNY0&t=1007s  Impressive results.

Does the commission see the grooming of High School students to be reckless gamblers as a revenue producing plus?

Outside of "suitability" the commission seems pretty happy with Penn/PSI's application. They seem particularly
happy with the financials. They are to base their decision on whether the applicant is a benefit to the commonwealth.

Will Penn finally coming up with the diversity goals it neglected to put in its application, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BiTXa0NpNY0&t=6380s be enough to counterbalance Barstool Sport's content?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwzQkLclbxI&t=31s
  
https://deadspin.com/barstool-sports-founder-tells-employee-shell-be-too-ugl-1827215385

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWN7gs0YbLw&t=274s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIUKcR0G91E&t=116s

The commission has issued a temporary license with a preliminary finding of suitability conditioned on PSI's cooperation
with an investigation into Barstool Sports marketing practices. I hope the bulk of the findings are made public.

If the commission finds, aside from the suitability issue, that Penn/PSI is an acceptable applicant, they can always
condition their license on renaming their product and not using Barstool Sports or its personalities to promote it.

I am surprised that the Barstools Sports branding was given even a preliminary finding of suitability. It does
not take much time doing google searches to get a picture of the brand, and it's face Dave Portnoy.

Does he have integrity?

https://twitter.com/BarstoolZ/status/1616247337021587456

What is his reputation like

https://twitter.com/BarstoolZ/status/1616250331729387520

Is he a close associate of Penn? Very close according to Mr Portnoy. He sounds like a defacto Senior Executive

https://twitter.com/BarstoolZ/status/1616246921395331072

If Barstool Sportsbook projects a larger market share in MA than it has in other states, it is likely
because they are counting on familiarity with the toxic brand they bought after performing due diligence

I hope this investigation isn't simply an exercise in (excuse the expression) ass covering for a commission that is
primarily interested in dollar signs.

If you show an interest, I can show you some more

Cordially

Z

PS some of your early January 2023 YouTube videos are titled 2022