The Finger Wag – Athletes using Twitter and Social Media to their Disadvantage

We’re too young to remember it personally, but athletes used to have personality.  Babe Ruth pointing towards center field. Namath guaranteeing a Superbowl upset.   Individualism and sometimes brazen arrogance, in measured amounts, allowed us to connect with the athletes we watched perform.

But that didn’t last forever.  Maybe it was Jordan showing a well cultivated image could be worth hundreds of millions.  It could have been John Rocker’s career destroyed by his own idiotic statements to an SI reporter.  It may have been the tabloidization of sports journalism covering the seedy personal lives of athletes.

It doesn’t matter why it happened, but athletes basically shut down all access.  How many times must we hear, “Just go out there and give 110%”, “Just take it one play at a time”  and the endless array of sports clichés that tell us absolutely nothing about the world on the field and inside the locker room that we desperately want to know about.

And now, when an athlete does say something new it is discussed, dissected and demonized by the sports media.

But things are changing.

In the information age, athletes can attempt to control their own image by talking directly to fans.

We know Shaq has more Twitter fans than basketball fans interested in what he has to say.  Chad Ochocinco had fans explain to him how to set up an xBox live account.

But with any new media, there will be missteps…many of them hilarious.

Have you ever seen Stephon Marbury cry?  I have. For some reason he wanted everyone to see it.

Do you want to see Ron Artest sing the Titanic theme?  I sure don’t.  But he made me watch it.

When athletes try to reach out and fail (and on the rare occasion they succeed), we’ll be here to wag our finger like Dikembe, or extend a handshake.

And if someone makes a fool of themselves, so be it.  As long as our athletes get their personality back.

–ScottiePP7

–Willie Beamen