Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2008 | 11:05 a.m.
Harrah's has a new director of communications for its sports and entertainment division, writes Newsday media critic Neil Best in his popular
The new spokesman is Seth Palansky, who has been the spokesman for the NFL Network, which is based in Los Angeles.
Palansky's name probably is unfamiliar to Las Vegas-area NFL fans. But if you're an NFL die-hard in other large media markets, including New York and
Boston, you've probably come across his name.
The NFL Network is not available on all cable systems nationwide, which is a problem if you're a fan of a particular team but outside its home media market. The network airs about a dozen games each year - and almost exclusively. Twice this season, a game of prominence was only to be aired on the network and local broadcast stations within the two teams' media boundaries. (The NFL later lifted that rule for a much-hyped Week 17 contest between the Giants and Patriots, coincidentally the two teams playing in Sunday's Super Bowl).
So Packers fans in Wisconsin but outside the Green Bay media market couldn't watch their pivotal game against the Dallas Cowboys in late 2007 unless they had satellite or went to a sports bar.
The network caught major flak from fans and critics for its perceived rigid position in its war with big cable, and Palansky was front and center.
The network is available on satellite and on Cox Communications' digital tiers in Las Vegas and San Diego.
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