Social Media and the spreading of news
Before social media has taken off the way it has, people had to read newspapers or watch TV to find out the latest happenings in the sporting world. Now, people are all on Twitter and Bleacher Report trying to find the latest updates in the sport world. Because of this, news updates are coming more frequently and faster than ever before. Journalists now use Twitter and other forms of social media to help spread news before the full article is written so that fans can have an opportunity to get the quick scoop instead of having to wait for a headline. This has occasionally even allowed the average fan to get breaking news before major journalists, such as when 2 teenagers broke the Billy Butler deal with the A's before insiders such as Ken Rosenthal had a chance. Social media allows big plays to be spread faster than ever before, such as the Odell Beckham Jr. catch against the Cowboys, which went viral almost within the hour.
Of course, social media and news spreading also has its downsides. Because of how fast stories spread, there is the increased likelihood of inaccuracies being reported when news is broken in such a manner. While not directly related to sport, the false identification of several suspects after the Boston Marathon bombings showed the danger of how social media can mis-report the news. Quality of news reporting can also decrease since social media is an outlet that lets anyone posts the stories that they want, which can result in the lower denominator out-muscling the quality news sources.
Overall, social media and the spreading of news is what I see as a positive development for the sporting world, since it helps satisfy our desire for faster and more frequent news of our favorite players and teams.
Source:
http://wapc.mlb.com/cutfour/2014/11/19/101946254/meet-the-two-teens-who-scooped-the-mlb-world-and-broke-news-of-the-billy-butler-signing
Monday, November 24, 2014
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
Athletes and Social Media Branding
This blog is going to be an extension of a paper I wrote earlier about linking professional players and social media.
Earlier this week, I had the privilege of participating in a Q&A session with Koby Altman, who is the Director of Pro Personnel for the Cleveland Cavaliers. One of the questions that was asked during the session was his take on social media and how it affects the players and vice versa. While he mainly said that they can't stop social media and athletes from mixing as long as it's not harmful, he made a key point in noting how top level players have levered social media to be a branding and marketing tool for their name. LeBron James was cited as a key example in his answer, as he noted that LeBron is the most followed player on Twitter, and has used Twitter as a marketing platform for his business ventures. In this vein, other players of similar clout would be Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Kevin Durant, Derrick Rose, Kevin Love, and Jeremy Lin, to cite a few examples. What all these players have in common is the massive popularity behind them, whether it's due to the style of play or their uniqueness. However, all these players have the ability to turn their social media profile into a brand unto itself, as a perfect of way of self-promoting while allowing an even more intimate experience for their fans, who may have a chance of getting to personally interact with their favorite athletes. At the same time, these guys need to be aware that since social media is more instantaneous, so is the brand they have built for themselves, and thus they need to be extra careful on how or what they post for the world to see. Fortunately, most of these players likely have a good marketing team to help them coordinate their social media campaigns so they won't need to worry to much about a snafu occurring with their social media planning.
At the end, as long as these guys plan well and play well, they can see their social media brands rise as fast as a tech stock on Wall St. At the same time, they can see it fall as fast as Enron stock after their fraud came to light, so they need to make sure that their social media activities can withstand the pitfalls and controversies that can easily arise from this.
Earlier this week, I had the privilege of participating in a Q&A session with Koby Altman, who is the Director of Pro Personnel for the Cleveland Cavaliers. One of the questions that was asked during the session was his take on social media and how it affects the players and vice versa. While he mainly said that they can't stop social media and athletes from mixing as long as it's not harmful, he made a key point in noting how top level players have levered social media to be a branding and marketing tool for their name. LeBron James was cited as a key example in his answer, as he noted that LeBron is the most followed player on Twitter, and has used Twitter as a marketing platform for his business ventures. In this vein, other players of similar clout would be Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Kevin Durant, Derrick Rose, Kevin Love, and Jeremy Lin, to cite a few examples. What all these players have in common is the massive popularity behind them, whether it's due to the style of play or their uniqueness. However, all these players have the ability to turn their social media profile into a brand unto itself, as a perfect of way of self-promoting while allowing an even more intimate experience for their fans, who may have a chance of getting to personally interact with their favorite athletes. At the same time, these guys need to be aware that since social media is more instantaneous, so is the brand they have built for themselves, and thus they need to be extra careful on how or what they post for the world to see. Fortunately, most of these players likely have a good marketing team to help them coordinate their social media campaigns so they won't need to worry to much about a snafu occurring with their social media planning.
At the end, as long as these guys plan well and play well, they can see their social media brands rise as fast as a tech stock on Wall St. At the same time, they can see it fall as fast as Enron stock after their fraud came to light, so they need to make sure that their social media activities can withstand the pitfalls and controversies that can easily arise from this.
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
Social media in professional sport
Due to the fact that it's almost 3 in the morning and I've been doing 2 separate large projects, I'm going to have to keep this post brief.
With the rise of social media as a tool in communication, it is important that professional athletes and teams are able to take advantage of this technological rise. This tool allows for more instantaneous marketing, more customer participation, and quicker customer feedback. With these benefits, many athletes and teams have already gone about setting up accounts of various social media outlets such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. Each platform allows for its user to communicate in a different way, Facebook allows for posts and longer statuses, as well as a chance for direct commenting, Twitter allows for instant and quick updates on news and happenings, and Instagram and Pinterest represent ways to its users to stand out on a visual platform. Any team/athlete that utilizes these platforms well can stand to exponentially increase the exposure they get, as posts and photos that go viral often hit the news as well, getting people who may not be on social media a chance to see what is happening with their favorite team/athlete.
The biggest risk to this is also the biggest benefit, as poorly thought out social media campaigns can come back to bite the poster hard. To make it worse, whenever something is posted online, it is very likely that it will stay there forever, even if the original is deleted thanks to the capabilities of screenshots. Thus, teams and athletes who are not well versed in social media should have a handler who can help them figure out what to post and where to post, or in certain cases, teams of people whose main jobs are to develop ideas to be posted onto the various social media platforms that their clients are on.
Bottom line, social media's ability to instantly connect and expose is a big double-edged sword.
With the rise of social media as a tool in communication, it is important that professional athletes and teams are able to take advantage of this technological rise. This tool allows for more instantaneous marketing, more customer participation, and quicker customer feedback. With these benefits, many athletes and teams have already gone about setting up accounts of various social media outlets such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. Each platform allows for its user to communicate in a different way, Facebook allows for posts and longer statuses, as well as a chance for direct commenting, Twitter allows for instant and quick updates on news and happenings, and Instagram and Pinterest represent ways to its users to stand out on a visual platform. Any team/athlete that utilizes these platforms well can stand to exponentially increase the exposure they get, as posts and photos that go viral often hit the news as well, getting people who may not be on social media a chance to see what is happening with their favorite team/athlete.
The biggest risk to this is also the biggest benefit, as poorly thought out social media campaigns can come back to bite the poster hard. To make it worse, whenever something is posted online, it is very likely that it will stay there forever, even if the original is deleted thanks to the capabilities of screenshots. Thus, teams and athletes who are not well versed in social media should have a handler who can help them figure out what to post and where to post, or in certain cases, teams of people whose main jobs are to develop ideas to be posted onto the various social media platforms that their clients are on.
Bottom line, social media's ability to instantly connect and expose is a big double-edged sword.
Wednesday, October 1, 2014
On Athletes and Twitter:
Since the beginning of time when cave-people worshipped the caveman who could bring back the biggest mammoth, people have always found fellow peers to look up to. Connecting with that, one of the greatest joys of life is when someone you idolize and look up to gives you their acknowledgement, with showing off their private side being secondary.
With Twitter, fans have been given an opportunity to connect with their favorite athletes like never before, and some of the athletes have responded in kind by creating accounts that show off their more personal side that the media doesn't show. Twitter gave fans and athletes a chance to basically interact on a one-on-one basis thanks to being able to tweet to and in certain cases, directly message them. With the unfiltered interaction though, comes a double-edged sword. Since athletes on Twitter don't always have a PR or marketing team helping them out, they may end up expressing their thoughts in a way that is too controversial to the general public, or just releasing information that is TMI.
Twitter is also feared as a distraction for athletes by coaches and leagues, and many of them have instituted rules banning social media during certain times to make sure their players are fully in game mode, as well as making sure they're not accidentally tweeting out the game's strategy. One specific incident that led to this ban was the actions of NHL enforcer Paul Bisonette (@BizNasty), who regularly tweeted with fans during the game, which the NHL heavily frowned upon before formally banning the practice, since social media interactions could be seen as something that is damaging to the game's integrity.
All in all, Twitter is a great resource for athletes and fans to interact, but care must be taken so that what the athlete says doesn't end up coming back to bite them in the ass. Social media, after all, is a double-edged sword.
Since the beginning of time when cave-people worshipped the caveman who could bring back the biggest mammoth, people have always found fellow peers to look up to. Connecting with that, one of the greatest joys of life is when someone you idolize and look up to gives you their acknowledgement, with showing off their private side being secondary.
With Twitter, fans have been given an opportunity to connect with their favorite athletes like never before, and some of the athletes have responded in kind by creating accounts that show off their more personal side that the media doesn't show. Twitter gave fans and athletes a chance to basically interact on a one-on-one basis thanks to being able to tweet to and in certain cases, directly message them. With the unfiltered interaction though, comes a double-edged sword. Since athletes on Twitter don't always have a PR or marketing team helping them out, they may end up expressing their thoughts in a way that is too controversial to the general public, or just releasing information that is TMI.
Twitter is also feared as a distraction for athletes by coaches and leagues, and many of them have instituted rules banning social media during certain times to make sure their players are fully in game mode, as well as making sure they're not accidentally tweeting out the game's strategy. One specific incident that led to this ban was the actions of NHL enforcer Paul Bisonette (@BizNasty), who regularly tweeted with fans during the game, which the NHL heavily frowned upon before formally banning the practice, since social media interactions could be seen as something that is damaging to the game's integrity.
All in all, Twitter is a great resource for athletes and fans to interact, but care must be taken so that what the athlete says doesn't end up coming back to bite them in the ass. Social media, after all, is a double-edged sword.
Wednesday, September 10, 2014
Entry 2: New Media and College Sports
In modern America, college sports is as connected to the culture as baseball, apple pie, and McDonald's. As a result, coverage and support for the hundreds of teams across the nation can often get as prominent as the major professional sports if not bigger. Obviously, with the age of new media catching on, this means that college sports has also fallen under the umbrella of this new technology. New media is commonly described as information which can be instantaneous, easily edited by the public, and available anywhere there is an internet connection. With this, it can mean that coverage for the big teams and athletes can be as intimate and up-to-date as possible.
Of course, with the ability for almost anyone to contribute to new media, there is a distinct double-edged sword popping up. The benefit of having information spread instantaneously can be that feedback can be just as quick, but with fast spreading of information also comes the fast spreading of mis-information. A good analogy on this would be like saying that information is like butter, but in the rush to obtain and spread it some people may grab the mayonnaise (aka mis-information) instead and spread it like butter before realizing their mistake. As a result, more than it seems that corrections are being made to news and stories about college athletics. As well, since anybody can access and contribute to new media, this gives the personnel on the college teams more access to their fan base. Sometimes this can be good as it gives players and coaches a chance to communicate more directly with their fans. Other times, it can backfire, as some of them may end up commenting or posting a status that could reflect badly on not only them, but the team as well, especially since new media has no filter so to speak. Conversely, with the ability for fans to connect with their teams more than ever, it can mean that many more unsavory posts about said teams can be spread more easily as well.
In conclusion, new media is a great tool for college sports, both for the personnel and the fans, but they need to better learn how to control the information input and output going forward to continue the success it currently has.
In modern America, college sports is as connected to the culture as baseball, apple pie, and McDonald's. As a result, coverage and support for the hundreds of teams across the nation can often get as prominent as the major professional sports if not bigger. Obviously, with the age of new media catching on, this means that college sports has also fallen under the umbrella of this new technology. New media is commonly described as information which can be instantaneous, easily edited by the public, and available anywhere there is an internet connection. With this, it can mean that coverage for the big teams and athletes can be as intimate and up-to-date as possible.
Of course, with the ability for almost anyone to contribute to new media, there is a distinct double-edged sword popping up. The benefit of having information spread instantaneously can be that feedback can be just as quick, but with fast spreading of information also comes the fast spreading of mis-information. A good analogy on this would be like saying that information is like butter, but in the rush to obtain and spread it some people may grab the mayonnaise (aka mis-information) instead and spread it like butter before realizing their mistake. As a result, more than it seems that corrections are being made to news and stories about college athletics. As well, since anybody can access and contribute to new media, this gives the personnel on the college teams more access to their fan base. Sometimes this can be good as it gives players and coaches a chance to communicate more directly with their fans. Other times, it can backfire, as some of them may end up commenting or posting a status that could reflect badly on not only them, but the team as well, especially since new media has no filter so to speak. Conversely, with the ability for fans to connect with their teams more than ever, it can mean that many more unsavory posts about said teams can be spread more easily as well.
In conclusion, new media is a great tool for college sports, both for the personnel and the fans, but they need to better learn how to control the information input and output going forward to continue the success it currently has.
Sunday, September 7, 2014
Entry 1: Technology Deprivation.
This weekend, we were assigned to participate in a technology deprivation experiment (hence the title). For the experiment, we were to forgo using social media, email, the internet, and any messaging services for a period of 24 hours before slowly integrating them back into our daily lives. Being part of a generation that has had the benefit of enjoying all these features for most of our conscious lives, this task was clearly going to go as well as trying to lose weight while eating nothing but Big Macs and not exercising.
Starting 3 hours:
For the first three hours, I did pretty well since I could still call peeps, and I had the Red Sox game to watch on TV to numb my senses, after the game (Sox won 9-8 WOOHOO!), reality has sunken in since I could not go online to check the box score, nor could I go check the box scores of other teams to check my fantasy team (ARRGHH). With nothing else to do, I decided that I might as well shower and go to sleep since I couldn't browse online and I had no real desire to watch the highlights.
The Next Morning:
Progress was going surprisingly well since I planned to hang out with my friend all day before attending his little brother's Bar Mitzvah. Unfortunately, we both have a tendency of going onto our phones during dull times, and guess who couldn't use his phone to satiate his boredom (on a side note, HOW THE HECK DID I SURVIVE WITHOUT A PHONE WITH INTERNET??!!).
The Afternoon:
Still no phone meant bored out of my skull, although my friend tried to satiate it by trying to show me funny stuff he found online (MUST RESIST!). While waiting around his house, I figured I might as well watch TV and take a nap, which worked out quite well since I got refreshed if anything else. By the time we're ready to leave, 24 hours have passed, I HAVE SUCCEEDED. Alas, fate decided to screw me over by making me wait an extra hour and a half since the Bar Mitzvah took place at 5, THE EXACT SAME TIME THE RESTRICTIONS LIFT!!! Regardless, it's nice to see a boy ceremoniously become a man, so I couldn't exactly say it was a bad reason not to pop the phone up again the check the web for just a little longer.
The Night: At last, I can access the internet, 24 hours of tension released in one go as I can finally check my stats, as well as update my fantasy team, so it's all good. My inability to check email, social media, or text doesn't bother me as much as my lack of internet, since I have the ability to call in a worst case scenario anyways, and I was spending all day socializing, so Facebook and Twitter didn't end up being too busy anyways. At least if anything else, my ability to release all the internet tension that had built up meant I could relax more and party my night away.
Conclusion: Seeing that access to the internet for me is like water to a fish, I felt like a fish just gasping around until I finally could get it back. On the upside though, I can proudly say I survived the challenge, albeit with a little more mental wear than before (but at least I can now remember how elementary school me survived without internet access).
This weekend, we were assigned to participate in a technology deprivation experiment (hence the title). For the experiment, we were to forgo using social media, email, the internet, and any messaging services for a period of 24 hours before slowly integrating them back into our daily lives. Being part of a generation that has had the benefit of enjoying all these features for most of our conscious lives, this task was clearly going to go as well as trying to lose weight while eating nothing but Big Macs and not exercising.
Starting 3 hours:
For the first three hours, I did pretty well since I could still call peeps, and I had the Red Sox game to watch on TV to numb my senses, after the game (Sox won 9-8 WOOHOO!), reality has sunken in since I could not go online to check the box score, nor could I go check the box scores of other teams to check my fantasy team (ARRGHH). With nothing else to do, I decided that I might as well shower and go to sleep since I couldn't browse online and I had no real desire to watch the highlights.
The Next Morning:
Progress was going surprisingly well since I planned to hang out with my friend all day before attending his little brother's Bar Mitzvah. Unfortunately, we both have a tendency of going onto our phones during dull times, and guess who couldn't use his phone to satiate his boredom (on a side note, HOW THE HECK DID I SURVIVE WITHOUT A PHONE WITH INTERNET??!!).
The Afternoon:
Still no phone meant bored out of my skull, although my friend tried to satiate it by trying to show me funny stuff he found online (MUST RESIST!). While waiting around his house, I figured I might as well watch TV and take a nap, which worked out quite well since I got refreshed if anything else. By the time we're ready to leave, 24 hours have passed, I HAVE SUCCEEDED. Alas, fate decided to screw me over by making me wait an extra hour and a half since the Bar Mitzvah took place at 5, THE EXACT SAME TIME THE RESTRICTIONS LIFT!!! Regardless, it's nice to see a boy ceremoniously become a man, so I couldn't exactly say it was a bad reason not to pop the phone up again the check the web for just a little longer.
The Night: At last, I can access the internet, 24 hours of tension released in one go as I can finally check my stats, as well as update my fantasy team, so it's all good. My inability to check email, social media, or text doesn't bother me as much as my lack of internet, since I have the ability to call in a worst case scenario anyways, and I was spending all day socializing, so Facebook and Twitter didn't end up being too busy anyways. At least if anything else, my ability to release all the internet tension that had built up meant I could relax more and party my night away.
Conclusion: Seeing that access to the internet for me is like water to a fish, I felt like a fish just gasping around until I finally could get it back. On the upside though, I can proudly say I survived the challenge, albeit with a little more mental wear than before (but at least I can now remember how elementary school me survived without internet access).
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