Television coverage of live sporting events has finally met its maker – the convergence of the 21st century and social media. The 2012 Summer Olympics in London are far from the first to have a multitude of online media options at their disposal. Certainly every Olympics since the 1994 Winter Games in Lillehammer have found it hard to suppress news of winners and losers (remember Tonya Harding, one of our first imploding Internet personalities?)
In an effort to not lose viewers to the plethora of online content that spills forth from the UK throughout the American 9-to-5 workday, NBC airs many events live – swimming heats, archery and ladies water polo matches were a couple of things we caught live on a half hour lunch break today. Where the trouble comes in is NBC’s decision to tape delay the most popular events – gymnastics and any swimming event starring Michael Phelps – and air them during prime time. Those who follow these events find it hard to avoid knowing who wins well before the tape-delay broadcast. They have taken to Twitter to complain and tag tweets #nbcfail.
In spite of this, NBC claims the prime time ratings to date have been huge. While diehard fans of live events may be dismayed, decent tape delay coverage is really all most Americans expect. That and the usual slew of human interest stories, like the sext-y pictures of gymnast Danell Leyva, swimmer Ryan Lochte’s all American grill and Ann Romney’s horse Rafalca doing in the dressage competition?
So, what else are people talking about online this week?
- How can we miss either of you if you won’t go away? Sarah Palin gives the thumbs up to Chick-Fil-A’s anti-gay rhetoric by posing with hubby Todd at the fast food franchise, two bags of chicken and pickle sandos and waffle fries to go.
- Twitter launches Twindex to track the upcoming presidential election. Could the outcome of Obama vs. Romney be predicted before the polls even open by who’s trending better?
- Facebook’s stock is still down, even though its revenue is one-third higher than last year.
- American man of letters, Gore Vidal passed away this week at the age of 86. In many ways he was a pioneer in parlaying a print career into TV talk show histrionics. While he engaged in on-air verbal fisticuffs with the likes of William F. Buckley and Norman Mailer, we can only wonder what he would have thought of going a few rounds with “Jersey Shore’s” Snooki.
Image source: Oh No They Didn’t!
Renee Blodgett is the founder of We Blog the World. The site combines the magic of an online culture and travel magazine with a global blog network and has contributors from every continent in the world. Having lived in 10 countries and explored nearly 80, she is an avid traveler, and a lover, observer and participant in cultural diversity.
She is also the CEO and founder of Magic Sauce Media, a new media services consultancy focused on viral marketing, social media, branding, events and PR. For over 20 years, she has helped companies from 12 countries get traction in the market. Known for her global and organic approach to product and corporate launches, Renee practices what she pitches and as an active user of social media, she helps clients navigate digital waters from around the world. Renee has been blogging for over 16 years and regularly writes on her personal blog Down the Avenue, Huffington Post, BlogHer, We Blog the World and other sites. She was ranked #12 Social Media Influencer by Forbes Magazine and is listed as a new media influencer and game changer on various sites and books on the new media revolution. In 2013, she was listed as the 6th most influential woman in social media by Forbes Magazine on a Top 20 List.
Her passion for art, storytelling and photography led to the launch of Magic Sauce Photography, which is a visual extension of her writing, the result of which has led to producing six photo books: Galapagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome, Urbanization and Ecuador.
Renee is also the co-founder of Traveling Geeks, an initiative that brings entrepreneurs, thought leaders, bloggers, creators, curators and influencers to other countries to share and learn from peers, governments, corporations, and the general public in order to educate, share, evaluate, and promote innovative technologies.
