The current Olympic Games has seen an unprecedented engagement on social media, becoming a central component in the reception of information about the games. While organisers anticipated a surge in social media content, the volume and functionality 'as a news source for broadcasters and the printed press' (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-19191785) has been incredible.
Technically, this is not the first Olympics were social media has been present, with the Olympics in Beijing in 2008 having a presence on Facebook and other social media sources. However, social media platform Twitter, where most of the social content for the London games has been sourced (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-19191785), had just 6 million users at the time of Beijing (http://theconversationalcorporation.com/tag/twitter/).
Twitter and Facebook, among others, have presented users with an instantaneous connection with these Olympics that has never been seen before. It has allowed users to more readily engage with each sport, athlete and country in a way that feels more intimate.
Has this surge in social activity been a positive or negative aspect of these olympics? All I know is that it has become more accessible like never before.
References
http://theconversationalcorporation.com/tag/twitter/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-19191785
You make a good point about the explosion of new technology allowing greater communication especially in the case of Twitter. It's spectacular how Twitter has changed the landscape of traditional journalism, now everyone can read how athletes feel after winning or losing without having to wait the next day and purchase a paper.
ReplyDeleteMaybe include some terms or concepts from our text otherwise great use of the BBC source.
It will be interesting to see what new technology will be used in Rio and just as interesting to see what technology has remained.