I think Michael Craig already touched on this a little in his blog, but I figured I'd give my take as well. If you're media, and PokerNews, Bluff or ESPN aren't signing your checks, the 2007 WSOP is basically on lockdown. As James Brown once sang, "you pay the cost to be the boss," and from what I understand Bluff and PokerNews ponied up the most cash in order to have exclusive content rights. I can dig that, more power to them.
For the rest of us media, however, being at the WSOP feels a bit like being a second class citizen. My lavender press badge (could they make it any more demeaning?) has more small print and restrictions than a box of fireworks. Originally I had planned to shot a lot of videos from the WSOP, then I learned of the filming ban imposed on all online media outlets (excluding the aforementioned big spenders). If you're in broadcast, you get a whole five minutes of film time, but you must be accompanied by a Harrah's escort (no, not that kind of escort, unfortunately we're talking about the chaperone-type...I'd like to credit that one to Kristy Gazes who jokingly said "That sounds like fun" when I told her about the escort thing).
But it ain't all bad for us Lambdas and Mus here at the WSOP; Dave Curley, Harrah's public relations guy, and Nolan Dalla, the uncontested king of World Series media, do an outstanding job of keeping us outcasts informed and feeling loved. Which reminds me, I propose that exclusive rights be determined by a series of physical challenges similar to the homecoming competition from Revenge of the Nerds. Just imagine, Bluff and CardPlayer could settle their differences with a javelin toss, and LA Mike could battle BJ Nemeth in the belching contest.
I wonder how much it would cost to get exclusive media rights to that?
Quick Note: the hamburgers at the Poker Kitchen, which were pretty decent last year, are so bad I vote we just take the remaining ones and jettison them into outer space. I couldn't even get through half of one, and I'm pretty sure Harrah's is cooking them in tanning beds.
