Hello Everyone, first off, Happy National Problem Gambling Awareness Week!  Check out www.npgaw.org.

I must say I’ve watched ESPN my entire life and LOVE sports.  Yet as a network, they continue to disappoint me when it comes to the message, or lack thereof, that they are sending, especially with regard to poker.

As I mentioned, it’s National Problem Gambling Awareness Week (NPGAW), and I flip through the stations and OF COURSE, reruns of the World Series of Poker on ESPN2… Why ESPN?  I just don’t understand.  I have neglected to really take a stand against your programming, other than the last chapter of my book, and your horrible E:60 special on Phil Ivey, but now I’m very irritated and you WILL be mentioned in my speech tomorrow at Southern CT State University and just to be clear, I will not be talking about you fondly.  This might have been the last straw.  Now I will do my best to contact you in some way, shape, or form.  Your disregard for gambling awareness is way too clear and needs to be adjusted.

I found a “Contact ESPN” on google and did an email to who knows, but I was honest and included all of my contact info and sent in the email that I’ve included below.  I hope to receive a response, to which I will share with all of you.  (See my email below)

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It’s National Problem Gambling Awareness Week and you, as a network, live up to your reputation of having a complete disregard for the way you portray poker on television.  Especially considering I was able to find it airing on ESPN2 tonight.  You couldn’t even put it on hold this week?

Perhaps it’s time to stop ignoring how poker is being portrayed by ESPN and discuss the actual real ramifications of a life in the amateur poker world. Not everyone is successful and more and more college students …and young adults are becoming addicted. My name is Joe Turbessi, author of “Into the Muck: How poker changed my life.” Perhaps you’d be willing to spend a moment and check out my website www.intothemuck.com, contact me, and even review the book. It’s about time kids got to see what really happens out there, not the illusions you continue to fill their heads with.

Happy Problem Gambling Awareness Week, maybe you’ll actually start to take this seriously soon.

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I’m sure this will get tossed aside and left alone until gambling addictions can finally get the acknowledgment that is necessary in order to help promote awareness, which is especially important during this week.  Can’t ESPN show a little respect to what some responsible people are trying to do?

I apologize for my negativity toward ESPN, trust me, I love Sportscenter as much as anyone.  It plays in my house over and over again each day.  But I’m filled with disappointment toward ESPN.

But, on a different note, I spoke for the Newington Boy Scouts Troop 347 this past Wednesday night at Martin Kellogg Middle School in Newington, CT.  It was a great experience.  The scouts were the youngest group I’ve been in front of and it posed the challenge of how to portray a gambling addiction to some kids who haven’t ever gambled.

But first, thanks again to ESPN, because when I asked them, “have you ever heard of poker?  They all let out with a resounding yes.  However, they didn’t know the part of poker I was going to talk about.

I designed an activity with play money that illustrated how a gambling addiction could take place, and related it to their lunch money and getting roped into a constant battle which pitted them against their friends and hiding from their parents.  They seemed to follow me, which was awesome.  It was very rewarding to hopefully show them what could potentially happen if they let things get out of control.  I just wanted to illustrate on their level what I went through.

They were very hands on, had some great questions to ask, and seemed to relate to me pretty well.  All bonuses for me, because it helps me work off of them and tell them perhaps something I haven’t said in other speeches, which is why I encouraged them to ask questions at anytime during the speech.  I didn’t want them to be bored.

The parents were great as well.  And I reiterated to them how important it was to have their family’s support, which clearly the majority of them had with their parents showing up at the Boy Scouts meetings each month.  Even the parents asked questions like, “what are some signs we should look for when our child could potentially have a problem?”  I told them what my mother says in the “Afterword,” “be aware.”  But also to notice changes in their child’s personality, if they become much more isolated or things seem different, even depression.  All of this is important, but that’s where the support comes in, because the more support the parents give all along, the more they’re going to know their children.  That will enable them to understand changes that take place.

I also encouraged them to watch the Phil Ivey movie that I spoke about in my last blog as a family.  That way the kids could ask them questions if they had any about poker or the life he lives, and they could address the issues together.

I can’t thank the Boy Scouts of Newington Troop 347 enough for having me speak for them.  It was a great experience and I look forward to speaking at Southern CT State University tomorrow, March 7th at 7pm.

Keep checking back this week for more updates.  Also, look for me on “Better Connecticut” on March 16, 2011 at 3PM.  Check your local listings for times and availability.

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