Social Olympics

Sports unite us. So it’s not surprising that we are caught up in the wonder of the Olympic Games. But for many, when the Games are halfway around the world (and for me, 14 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time), there’s a pretty good chance that there will be “spoilers” as many of us are sleeping or working.

We often rely on social media for live updates — sometimes waking to all of the highlights on our phones. There’s a time delay with television but NBC is airing a live stream. So, in the case of Red Gerard’s snowboarding run as the first American gold medalist of the Games, his “fans learned of his triumph when outlets like The Washington Post, CNN and the Associated Press pushed out mobile news alerts.”

In a world of haste and immediate gratification, we want the Olympic experience as it happens. And there is no way to avoid the “spoilers” — especially during the Games. Like Rio and London, NBC is excelling at the “social” model and continuing to work at being the “first” to push the results. In a recent press release, they lead with “NBC Olympics surrounds the XXIII Olympic Winter Games from PyeongChang, South Korea, with a social media blitz that includes around-the-clock content across all of NBC Olympics’ social accounts and partnerships with Snapchat, celebrities, notable digital influencers, Musical.ly, Giphy, and more.” They follow with all of that you need to connect with them during the 17-day events.

The International Olympic Committee has guidelines encouraging “accredited persons” (to include “athletes, officials, personnel of National Olympic Committees and of International Federations and members of the accredited media) to post and share “experiences with their friends, family and supporters via social and digital media” as long as it is not for commercial use in promoting products or services. While there are some guidelines, in my review of the policies, I do not see references to the timing of the posts as not to “spoil” the excitement of the outcomes.

Totally disconnecting from one’s mobile device would be the only option. And while it would seem simple to turn off alerts, there are still daily timelines and feeds that push updates you may not want to see. In a world of “round the clock” information, it’s increasingly difficult to be selective with “real-time updates.” You’ve got to expect the “spoilers” — even beyond the thrills in PyeongChang.

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