Podcast Summary: The Journal. – "They Won Millions for Life. Until They Didn't."
Date: October 7, 2025
Hosts: Jessica Mendoza & Ryan Knutson
Guest Contributor: Akiko Matsuda (WSJ bankruptcy reporter)
Main Story: The collapse of Publishers Clearinghouse and the fate of its "lifetime" sweepstakes winners

Overview

This episode dives into the dramatic unraveling of Publishers Clearinghouse (PCH), the iconic sweepstakes company famous for its "forever" prize and those unforgettable scenes of surprised winners handed giant checks. Despite decades of delivering life-changing payouts—and hope—to ordinary Americans, PCH recently went bankrupt, leaving some winners without the money they were promised “for life.” The episode focuses on the story of Tamar and Matthew Veach, a family that won PCH’s “Forever Prize,” only to see their dream evaporate when the company collapsed.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Rise and Fall of Publishers Clearinghouse

• Origins in Magazines:

  • Founded in the 1950s on Long Island, PCH originally bundled and sold magazine subscriptions via direct mail.
    • Akiko Matsuda: “They sell magazine subscriptions on behalf of publishers. That’s why it’s called Publishers Clearinghouse.” (03:32)
  • By the 1980s, PCH expanded to merchandise: jewelry, coins, knick-knacks—all via mailers.

• Junk Mail and Marketing Gimmicks:

  • Americans received endless thick envelopes from PCH, fueling its reputation as junk mail fodder and even inspiring jokes on pop culture shows like “Seinfeld.”
    • Prize Patrol Host: “It just keeps coming and coming and coming. There’s never a let up… you gotta get it out. But the more you get out, the more it keeps coming in.” (04:22)

• The Sweepstakes Hook:

  • To cut through the junk mail fatigue, PCH added sweepstakes entries. This worked—prizes encouraged mail engagement and boosted sales.

• The “Prize Patrol” and Public Spectacle:

  • TV ads featuring the “Prize Patrol” delivering giant checks were central to the PCH brand.
    • Jessica Mendoza: “That’s the Stuff that, like, I remember about sw[eeptakes], it’s like, oh my gosh, there’s confetti. And then the giant, like, yeah, the giant check.” (06:02)

2. The Dream: $5,000 a Week “Forever”

• How It Worked:

  • The grandest PCH award: $5,000 a week, for life—extendable to a designated heir after the winner’s death.
    • Akiko Matsuda: “The biggest one is $5,000 a week forever… after the winner passes away, it’s gonna be passed along to… [a] designated person, until the person dies.” (06:18)

• A “Happy Moment” – Tamar and Matthew’s Story:

  • Tamar Veach, a military veteran in Oregon, won the “Forever” prize in 2021.
    • The Prize Patrol appeared at her door with balloons, cameras, and the famous oversized check.
    • Tamar Veach: “For me, it was a huge relief.” (08:55)
    • The couple used the first $50,000 to pay off debts and buy a family car.
    • Tamar Veach: “It’s a talk about an immense relief to just zero every bit of debt you have.” (10:27)
  • PCH promised ongoing annual payments of ~$200,000 (post-tax). At first, the checks came on schedule.

3. Cracks Appear: The Business Behind the Prizes

• Struggling to Transition Online:

  • Facing the decline of print media and rise of e-commerce, PCH tried moving online but failed to keep up.
    • Akiko Matsuda: “If you go to Amazon, you can buy anything, everything.” (14:17)
  • Costs soared for ads, postage, and fulfillment. Merchandise sales tanked.

• Regulatory Blow:

  • In 2023, the FTC accused PCH of deceiving customers—impressing on them that purchases improved odds of winning, despite no such requirement.
    • Akiko Matsuda: “[PCH] somehow gave the impression that if you buy… you’re going to win prizes.” (15:14)
  • PCH denied wrongdoing but settled for $18 million—a crippling sum for the ailing company.

4. Bankruptcy—and Broken Dreams

• Payments Stop:

  • In 2025, PCH filed for bankruptcy. Tamar and Matthew’s expected February payment was delayed, then canceled.
    • Tamar Veach: “Three weeks in we started. We emailed basically everyone… we finally got a response from one of their lawyers… ‘Oh, we’ve changed the system… we’re going to pay you quarterly in July now.’” (13:34)

• Contract Not Secured:

  • Winners like Tamar were considered unsecured creditors in bankruptcy, not entitled to priority repayment because they had no collateral to claim.
    • Akiko Matsuda: “That’s the whole point of bankruptcy, to give filers a second chance so that they can get out… and thrive as a new revived business.” (17:16)

• Company’s Assets Sold—Winners Left Behind:

  • PCH’s brand was bought for $7M by ARB Interactive, an online casino operator. But ARB isn’t on the hook for old debts or prize contracts.
    • ARB says it will ensure future prizes are protected, but past winners get only a fraction—if anything—of what they’re owed.
    • Tamar Veach: “I’ve joked with friends that we’re going to get a check for a couple hundred dollars and a handwritten note and that’ll be it.” (18:29)

• Personal Impact:

  • Tamar and Matthew still have veteran disability payments, but can no longer count on the “forever” prize for their kids’ college or their future.
    • Prize Patrol Host: “It was the deception that made it the worst… It’s the trust. Yeah. And the deception is the hardest because it’s like it didn’t really need to happen that way.” (19:06)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Jessica Mendoza: “But that forever prize didn’t exactly last forever.” (11:27)
• Tamar Veach: “We paid off debts… [It was] an immense relief…” (10:24)
• Akiko Matsuda: “The bankruptcy empowers those filers to reject contracts… if you are not secured creditors… this is just agreement between the two parties, so that can be rejected.” (17:16)
• Prize Patrol Host: “I played this game by their rules and then it was like I won because I did this… and so it was just kind of like. It’s the trust. Yeah. And the deception is the hardest…” (19:06)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:05-02:00] – The legend of PCH sweepstakes and TV spectacle
• [03:06-05:20] – PCH’s origins in magazines, mailers, and the expansion into sweepstakes
• [06:10-09:00] – Anatomy of the “forever” prize; Tamar’s account of winning
• [10:11-11:27] – How Tamar’s family used their winnings initially; faith in ongoing payments
• [12:47-13:59] – 2025: Payments stop, communications unravel
• [14:17-15:46] – Digital transition struggles and the FTC settlement
• [16:28-17:56] – How bankruptcy prioritizes creditors, and why winners lost
• [17:56-19:06] – New owner (ARB Interactive), impossibility of past winners collecting, personal fallout for Tamar’s family

Conclusion

This episode blends the nostalgia and spectacle of the PCH sweepstakes era with a sobering exploration of what happens when a long-standing business model collapses. The promise of “forever” proved fragile, and ordinary winners—convinced their windfalls would endure—must now face broken trust and lost security. The story of Tamar and Matthew Veach is a window into how corporate bankruptcy can reach directly into families’ lives, redefining not just company futures, but personal ones as well.