{"id":617,"date":"2012-08-02T01:42:39","date_gmt":"2012-08-02T01:42:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/imagemme.com\/newsite\/?p=617"},"modified":"2016-11-15T21:08:37","modified_gmt":"2016-11-15T21:08:37","slug":"the-social-olympics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/imagemme.com\/newsite\/the-social-olympics\/","title":{"rendered":"The #Social #Olympics"},"content":{"rendered":"
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So what\u2019s the big difference between Beijing 2008 and London 2012?<\/p>\n

Well, since 2008, YouTube now has 147.4 million unique viewers, a huge chunk of the world\u2019s population has a Facebook profile, and Olympians have decided taking to Twitter to convey the behemoth emotional weight the games puts on them is an appropriate outlet.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u00a0When it comes down to who\u2019s involved with the Olympics, there\u2019s no doubt that there\u2019s an added fixture that comes in the form of social media platforms, but how heavily has it impacted London 2012? To go back to the Opening Ceremony, a sizeable portion of the performance was dedicated to one \u201cboy meets girl\u201d scenario. Instead of the regular \u201cboy meets girl, boy talks to girl\u201d plotline, this scene came in the form of \u201cboy texts girl, boy tweets girl\u201d. Alas, their future relationship is in jeopardy when girl has lost her mobile device. The audience waits in anticipation. What is she to do without her cellphone? Will they ever meet again? At the very end, boy returns girl\u2019s lost cell phone and they are reunited once again all thanks due to their network of cyber friends. While you can take this as an ode to technology-induced devolving communication skills, the purpose of this could also be centered on how digital media \u201cbrings people together\u201d.\u00a0 Whatever you got from that scene, the importance of social media was a focal point at one of the biggest television events of the year.<\/p>\n

\"otweet_462\"<\/p>\n

Digital media has taken up such a large part of the London 2012 games, it has even been dubbed the \u201cthe social media Olympics\u201d by the IOC (International Olympics Committee). Yet, no one really predicted that platforms like Twitter would be getting athletes and journalists into some serious trouble. One Swiss soccer player, Michael Morganella, was banned for mentioning on Twitter that he wanted to \u201cbeat up\u201d the South Korean team and then continued by calling the opposing players a \u201cbunch of Mongoloids\u201d in a Tweet. Another athlete, Voula Papachristou, was ousted from her national team for mentioning on Twitter, \u201cWith so many Africans in Greece, at least the West Nile mosquitoes will eat home made food!\u201d The IOC is taking social media seriously this time around and are apparently not afraid to make an example out of loose-tongued athletes. In addition to a few Olympians, one British reporter was banned from Twitter for mentioning the email address of NBC Olympics president Gary Zenkel. The ever-growing importance of each individual\u2019s digital presence should, apparently, not be taken lightly. Social media is allowing for an uncensored and truly candid picture of what happens at the games, both in and out of the competitions.<\/p>\n

Of course, not all online profiles belonging to athletes result in doom and expulsion. Personal profiles belonging to Olympians offer real-time coverage of London 2012. Never have we seen the games through the eyes of an athlete, unless through awkward interviews post-race, which don\u2019t always truly reflect what the Olympian is thinking or feeling.\u00a0 Consumers, for the first time, can understand the emotional impact of the Olympics in real time through the athlete\u2019s social media accounts. How are the athletes really feeling, not just performing?\u00a0 We feel the heartbeat and true human emotion behind these \u201cbrands\u201d that have been cultivated and packaged into endorsement deals and saleable entities.\u00a0 For the first time, we see the true human behind the packaged horsepower and it makes for a whole different viewing experience.<\/p>\n

While Twitter is proving to be quite deadly or an expos\u00e9 for some athletes, social media is still immensely useful for many major brands. Recently, Coca-Cola launched an online campaign for Vitamin Water featuring their new mantra \u201cSkip the Dip\u201d to coincide with the 2012 games. On a grander scale, Coca-Cola\u2019s \u201cMove to the Beat\u201d campaign, which can be seen on their YouTube channel, convinced audiences the brand was far more aligned with the London 2012 games than competitor PepsiCo. On a more on-site level, fast-food giant McDonalds now features QR codes on the packaging at their Olympic Park location to supply customers up-to-date nutritional information. From major sponsors, to smaller brands trying to ride the wave of the games, social media has provided an immersion point for brands of all sizes to engage consumers in a relevant and timely manner.<\/p>\n

\"screen-shot-2012-08-02-at-3-13-56-pm\"<\/p>\n

Both audiences and athletes feel the palpable shift in engagement from the 2008 games to the 2012 Olympic games, and there is no doubt that social media has had a considerable impact on this year\u2019s Olympics thus far. Whether it\u2019s through real-time Tweets from emotional athletes or with packaging innovation, London 2012 mirrors the major changes in the world\u2019s digital landscape and we can\u2019t wait to see what 2016 brings!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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