When I heard that Christina Binkley was coming out with a book about Las Vegas and the tycoons who today dominate the gaming industry, I was excited. After all, Binkley was a reporter for the Wall Street Journal for 10 years, and during that time delivered more scoops than a Baskin-Robbins on a hot summer day.

To say I was disappointed with the results is an understatement.

Binkley had full access to Wynn and Loveman, but she did not interview Kerkorian for this book, as the reclusive 90-year-old billionaire isn’t very publicity-friendly. While she has compiled a wonderful array of anecdotes on her three major subjects, she has been roundly criticized for leaving out Sheldon Adelson, the boisterous chairman of Las Vegas Sands, which owns the Venetians in Las Vegas and Macau.

I could have forgiven that exclusion, because you have to draw the line somewhere. Binkley’s crime, in my eyes, is her tendency to play fast and loose with the facts. You’d think that the accuracy demanded by the nation’s premier business newspaper would have been reflected in her book.

The most interesting and accurate part of this book is its descriptions of the business styles of its subjects. Since each one has a different focus—Wynn relies on luxury, Kerkorian goes for size, and Loveman conducts his business scientifically—any budding entrepreneur will glean wonderful nuggets of information usable in almost any business situation. Add that to Binkley’s wonderful stories about each man, and this should have been an entertaining book.

But she makes some rather easy-to-fix errors throughout Winner Takes All. Most are minor but still significant (like misspelling entertainer Danny Gans’ name as “Ganz,” and calling Gillian Wynn the eldest daughter of Steve and Elaine, though she is the youngest). And when you add up the mistakes (at least 12, according to Las Vegas journalist Steve Friess), it makes you wonder if all these fascinating stories are true.

The most egregious error is Binkley’s contention that casino companies make most of their profits from people with gambling problems. This opinion has been disproved many times, and the fact that she repeats it in what should be a serious business book calls into question the entire tone of Winner Takes All.

By Casino Connection Staff