Recently, as you've probably all heard by now, the NHL has instituted a policy for social media, and more specifically Twitter. Here is the article in the Toronto Star. The NHL has banned tweeting before and after games due to it's ability to shed a negative light on their sport and brand. Way to hop on the bandwagon. As usual, the North America's 4th professional league is the last to adopt anything, as the NFL, NBA and MLB all have policies instituted.
According to both league and media representatives, Twitter and its 140 character limit of one's thoughts, are completely changing professional sports. Yup. Coaches must be changing how they gameplan and practice alright. In fact, touchdowns and goals aren't allowed if the scorer didn't properly tweet using all 140 characters prior to the score.
ESPN Sunday NFL Countdown ran an article on Sunday Morning that, while being produced well, was full of scare tactics the likes of which is generally reserved for Fox News. Twitter is not a game changer. TO was sounding off long before social media. Joe Namath shared what he thought without his cell phone. It won't affect anything coaches or players do regarding the game. What Twitter does do, is remove the boundary between the athlete and the fan, allowing for accessibility.
Twitter and its access to people's thoughts is blamed for the controversy surrounding Rashard Mendenhall, Jay Cutler and Chad Ochocinco (well, probably not Ochocinco), as well as many other professional athletes. Yes, this can be a concern, as it allows for a direct dialogue between the athlete and fan, and most athletes have not taken classes on public relations and proper communication. The athlete does not only represent his or her own brand, but also that of their team (which includes teammates, coaches, owners, and all other employees) and that of the league. It is the responsibility of the athlete to be professional with their social media, but that still leaves plenty of room for personality.
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