76% in NJ favor limits on sports betting ads
By: Daniel Munoz
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... Does New Jersey need to limit the number of gambling ads residents are expose to?
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The answer, according to a majority of voters in the state interviewed in a recent poll by Fairleigh Dickinson University, is yes.
..... Ads have become seemingly ubiquitous since a 2018 landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision struck down a near-nationwide ban on sports betting.
..... You might see a commercial for a Caesars sport-book app during a New York Giants game, or an ad for FanDuel - the official sports betting partner for Major League Baseball - in the middle of a Yankee game.
..... "It's way out of line," New Jersey Assemblyman Ralph Caputo, who chairs the Assembly's tourism and Gaming Committee, said in a 2022 interview. "It's completely insane. You cant; even turn a TV on without seeing an ad."
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the new FDU poll, whose results were realest Friday, [03/07/2025] found that 76% of New Jersey voters favor a limit on gambling ads. Majorities of Democrats, Republicans and independent voters all felt the same way.
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men and women, and Black, white and Hispanic voters all also agreed that there ought to be limits,a s did voters in every age group - those under 303, those 31 to 44 years old, 45 to 65 and up.
..... If either party is looking for a slam dunk issue in New Jersey, this is it," said Dan Cassino, executive director of the FDU Poll. "Even the groups most likely to take part in gambling, like young men, seem to be fed-up with all of the ads."
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Since the 2018 U.S. Supreme Court decision, state residents have wagered about $18 billion in New Jersey sports-books, most of it bet Online or via mobile apps.
..... Studies have shown that sports betting, now legal in 39 states, is particularly risky, leading to higher rates of debt, lower savings and even bankruptcies, the nonprofit news organization Stateline reported in December. [2024]
..... Experts warn that the convenience of Online betting, combined with heavy advertising, has made gambling more addictive, particularly for young men.
..... A separate FDU poll form last September [2024] found that 10% of men ages 18 to 30 reported gambling problems, compared with 3% of the overall adult population.
..... In a 2023 study, the Rutgers Center for gambling Studies found he rate of high-risk problem gambling among the New Jersey population to be 6%, three times the national average.
..... Meanwhile, proposed legislation would decriminalize underage gambling in New jersey and in its place institute civil penalties. Advocates of the bill say the fines would be sued for prevention, treatment and education around problem gambling.
Narrow support for banning cellphone in classrooms
..... The same FDU poll also tested public opinion on banning cellphones in classrooms, and found that 49% favored it, with 45% opposed.
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Citing mental health concerns among students and a need to eliminate distraction, Governor Phil Murphy announced in his January [2025] State of the State address that he wants a statewide ban on cellphones in classrooms.
..... The poll relied on the responses of 1,476 New Jersey voters interview via phone between February 23 and 29. [2025] the margin of error was plus or minus 2.9 percentage points.