The Sahara Las Vegas casino is not making plans for a permanent shutdown. That’s the message the company wants the world to know and they’re not afraid to back up that assertion in a court of law. It’s a message that the Las Vegas blog Vital Vegas is learning the hard way after reporting rumors to that effect on a recent posting.
The little blog, and it’s owner Scott Roeben’s problems with the Sahara Las Vegas casino started with a seemingly innocuous tweet reading, “Gut punch of the day: Rumor is Sahara could close permanently in September. Permanently.” That missive was followed up with an article titled, “Sahara Las Vegas to Close Permanently, Per Sources.” Roeben’s content went viral and the Sahara was quickly inundated by surprised fans, reporters, and vendors who were lamenting its alleged demise. The only problem was that none of it was true.
Officials at the Sahara moved fast to stem the tide of misinformation, which they say included traumatized employees, by filing a complaint with the local court for misrepresentation. An attorney for the Sahara described the situation in court documents saying, “The fallout from the Headline’s publication was widespread. LVRH has had to expend considerable effort assuring worried employees that the SAHARA was not closing, many of whom were already concerned about their jobs as a result of the current COVID-19 pandemic.”
Casino officials also fired off their own tweet reading, ““There is no merit to this claim. It is extremely disappointing to have someone spread unfounded rumors that detrimentally impact our team members, guests and community,” according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Roeben defended himself saying that the Sahara’s actions were heavy-handed and that he had reported that the rumor was just that, and never actually claimed the Sahara was closing.