ProPublica: DraftKings Gave VIP Status to Reporter Who Bet Like a Problem Gambler

ProPublica reporter Jake Pearson deposited $21,600 and lost $10,702 over 10 weeks while mimicking problem-gambling behavior. DraftKings upgraded him to VIP status with a personal rep and bonuses, even though it had built a data-science tool to flag risky losses and chose not to deploy it.

• Pearson deposited $21,600 and lost $10,702 over 10 weeks
• He got VIP status after losing $1,800 in one night
• DraftKings built but did not deploy a risky-loss detection tool
• 1.8% of problem gamblers generated 51% of Connecticut sports-betting revenue