PlayPennsylvania is one of dozens of Play-branded sites in the Catena Media network that provides reliable, trustworthy content and resources on the legal gambling industry. Our site is independently owned and operated and has no ownership ties to any casino – commercial, tribal, online or otherwise.
What we do
- Provide the latest news and information around gambling legislation, legal gaming options, and the Pennsylvania casino industry.
- Educate consumers about safe and responsible gambling.
- Provide reliable resources and reviews for legal land-based and online gambling options.
Our mission
Our mission is to be a trusted source of news, information, and resources for legal gambling in Pennsylvania.
To achieve that mission, we have rigorous editorial standards for publishing, which you can read about here. We also have industry experts who write and fact-check all the content you will find at PlayPennsylvania.
Contact Us
Catena Media
11700 W. Charleston BLVD #170 – 520
Las Vegas, NV 89135
Meet the Content Team at PlayPennsylvania
Our editorial team includes professional writers and journalists who collectively boast decades of experience covering legal gambling and sports in Pennsylvania, Atlantic City, and beyond.
Chris Imperiale, Managing Editor
Chris Imperiale covers legal sports betting and casino gambling in the Northeast US. He has a journalism degree from Rutgers University and was formerly on staff at Bleacher Report.
Corey Sharp, Lead Writer
Corey Sharp is the Lead Writer at PlayPennsylvania bringing you comprehensive coverage of sports betting and gambling in Pennsylvania. Corey is a 4-for-4 Philly sports fan and previously worked as a writer and editor for the Philadelphia Inquirer and NBC Sports Philadelphia.
Hill Kerby, Writer
Hill Kerby comes from a background of poker, sports and psychology. He brings all of that expertise into his writing, where he contributes content in the growing legalized sports betting, online casino and gambling industry.
Nathan Frederick, Writer
Nathan Frederick is an award-winning writer with more than 1,000 published bylines and two decades of journalism experience. His work has won awards from the Pennsylvania Society of Professional Journalists, the Keystone Press Association, and the Associated Press Sports Editors. He has also authored three books, one of which debuted as an Amazon No. 1 New Release.
Brian Cross, Writer
Brian Cross is a freelance writer who studied Professional Writing and Journalism at the University of Cincinnati. Brian cut his teeth at Cincinnati’s alt-weekly as a contributing writer for over 10 years. He grew up tagging along to the horse track with dad on the weekends, and still picks horses based on the color of their silks.
Dave Bontempo, Writer
Dave Bontempo, a multiple national award-winning boxing commentator and writer, authors NFL betting columns for the Press of Atlantic City and IGaming Player, among others. He extensively covers legal New Jersey and Pennsylvania sports betting and is also an on-camera personality for Eagles betting content in the Catena Media network.
Ian St. Clair, Content Manager
Ian St. Clair manages the sites for some of the biggest gambling markets in the US, including PlayPennsylvania. He has covered the sports betting and gambling industry since early 2020 and is now leading the charge in the most influential markets to potentially launch online casinos. A University of Northern Colorado graduate, he also has over a decade of journalism experience covering college and professional athletics. He and his wife’s three cats secretly run their house, including brothers Cheech and Chong.
Valerie Cross, Analyst
Valerie Cross oversees content for Catena Media’s Play-branded sites in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Michigan and has covered poker and the legal gambling industry since 2016. Valerie got her BA at Furman University and has MA and PhD degrees in language education from Indiana University.
Dustin Gouker, Analyst
Dustin Gouker has been a journalist for more than 15 years, working as a reporter, editor and designer — including stops at The Washington Post and the D.C. Examiner.
Eric Ramsey, Analyst
Eric is a reporter and writer covering poker, sports betting, and DFS. He comes from a poker background, formerly on staff at PokerNews and the World Poker Tour.
Bill Gelman, Former Contributor
Bill Gelman is a veteran sports writer based just outside of Philadelphia and not too far from the Jersey Shore. Bill covers the legal gambling industry including sports betting, online casinos and Atlantic City casino news.
Martin Harris, Former Contributor
Martin Harris is a writer and teacher who has reported on poker, online gambling, and sports betting since the mid-2000s. Once a full-time academic (Ph.D., English), he currently teaches part-time in the American Studies program at UNC Charlotte. In 2019, his book Poker & Pop Culture was published by D&B Books.
Katie Kohler, Former Contributor
Katie Kohler is a Philadelphia-area based award-winning journalist. She is the Managing Editor at PlayPennsylvania and covers the Pennsylvania gambling industry with an emphasis on sports betting, online casino/poker and the lottery.
Derek Helling, Former Contributor
Derek Helling is a freelance journalist who resides in Chicago. He is a 2013 graduate of the University of Iowa and covers the intersections of sports with business and the law.
Licensing information
Catena Media’s Play-branded sites provide information and avenues to sign up for legitimate gambling sites, which requires proper licensing. PlayPennsylvania is registered under Catena Operations Ltd. as a licensed vendor through the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, assuring the site abides by all relevant gaming regulations to protect consumers.
- Authorized Gaming Service Provider – Active as of April 4, 2019
As such, we will never promote an offshore or otherwise questionable gambling site.
Advertising disclosure
PlayPennsylvania is an independent publication with no ownership stake in any casino brand. Our network of sites is, however, advertising-supported. Some of those advertisers include commercial casinos.
There is no connection between our advertising and our news content. Our news, analysis and reviews are objectively produced by our writing team. We do not accept sponsored posts or other forms of “native” advertising.
- In some cases, we may receive a commission or other financial compensation when you visit an online poker room, sportsbook or casino via a link on our site.
- In other cases, casinos or poker rooms may pay us in exchange for advertising space. These ads are clearly marked as sponsorship or are otherwise obviously demarcated from content (e.g. banner ads).
Our Editorial Policies and Review Process
PlayPennsylvania has a talented team of professional editors and writers who are experts in various aspects of the legal gambling industry. Most of our esteemed writers live in Pennsylvania where they regularly cover PA gambling on the ground, utilizing local contacts and primary sources in the PA gaming space. When we use secondary sources, our policy is to make it clear where our information came from, and appropriately cite all references.
All of our content at PlayPennsylvania is thoroughly researched and goes through a robust review process before publication. We have a team of copy editors that checks for grammar and spelling errors. PlayPennsylvania’s managing editor Chris Imperiale then fact-checks all articles before they go live. Our reviews are done by a professional team of writers with intimate knowledge of online gambling websites in PA.
We strive to produce the best objective resources on gambling options and local sports betting and industry news. In the event that errors occur in our published materials, they are quickly corrected. When significant updates are made to an article, our policy is to explicitly state what was added and when the update was made.
Media appearances
Members of our team are regularly called upon for expertise on a number of topics pertaining to the regulated gambling industry in Pennsylvania. For media inquiries, please contact [email protected].
Careers at Catena Media
PlayPennsylvania and other sites throughout our network of Catena Media sites are looking to add motivated, talented writers to our team. If you are interested in a position with Catena, visit our Careers page.