UPDATE 1-Harrah's income hurt by impairment charge

* Q2 oper income down 98 pct

* Rev down nearly 13 pct

NEW YORK, July 24 (Reuters) - Harrah's Entertainment, Inc [HAMLEH.UL], one of the world's largest casino operators, said on Friday its second quarter income from operations sank 98 percent in the second quarter, hurt by a hefty impairment charge.

The operator of 53 casinos reported income from operations of $6.3 million, down from $323.1 million a year earlier.

Harrah's was hurt by a $297.1 million charge for impairments of goodwill and other intangible assets.

Total revenue sank nearly 13 percent to $2.27 billion.

"We still face challenges, particularly in Las Vegas and Atlantic City, though our cost-reduction efforts led to improved second-quarter EBITDA margins in other markets we serve," said Chief Executive Gary Loveman, in a statement.

Harrah's was bought out by private equity firms last year, but still has publicly traded debt. (Reporting by Deepa Seetharaman)