To WomenTalkSports members/fans – please note that Dr. Nicole Lavoi from the Tucker Center (One Sport Voice) will be speaking on a very interesting panel from 2:40-3:40 CST: You’ve Gotta Fight For Your Right…to Blog?: A Legal and Ethical Primer to Sports Media. Should be interesting. Make sure you participate in the conversation and be sure to use the #bwb3 hashtag.

Watch live video from blogswithballs on Justin.tv

Step in the right direction, and certainly sets an example for the rest of the country. There are TWO championships going on people!

Hat-tip to Christine Brennan at USA Today for writing about the story.

To get involved in a bracket challenge, join us at WomenTalkSports.com (there will be giveaways!)

During a game on Wednesday (that was being filmed on ESPN), Griner threw a punch at Texas Tech’s Jordan Barncastle. Right in the face. (ouch!)

Brave move as a freshman. Mechelle Voepel wrote a really good piece on this on ESPN.com. I highly suggest you check it out if you’re interested in a full digestion of what this means for Griner’s future career.

You might ask about what this has to do with women and sports. As you can see in the preview of the game below, there will be sports games on the system. Although we didn’t get to try any of them, they look pretty cool! This is a good, creative way to get young girls physically active at home, as well as engaged and excited about sports.

Excited for Nadal to come out! I might have to buy an Xbox for this…

Imagine yourself as Linsey Vonn yesterday – a native of Saint Paul, Minnesota, who has been working her whole life, since she was 2 years old, to bring home an Olympic gold in women’s downhill skiing.

She finally does it, gives hugs to her family in the stands, and picks up a cell phone to call some close friends from home.

Only one thing – nobody wants to answer the phone. Not because they’re not interested, but because nobody has seen it yet. NBC wouldn’t be airing her performance until later that night, on primetime television, when more people were watching.

This post is about power.

We all know – money is a big driver of power. Unfortunately for all of us, nowhere is this more apparent than NBC’s broadcast coverage of the 2010 Olympics.

What do I mean? Well, advertising money, more-so than monumental athletic performances, are influencing NBC’s broadcast decisions during the 2010 Olympics.

NBC is infuriating millions of fans by tape-delaying important events. People online are freaking out, and media publications are picking up on it. Need examples? Read this article by Henry Blodget of Business Insider or today’s piece by Sports Illustrated, or yesterday’s piece in the New York Times.

NBC infuriated millions of “people like me” when they tape-delayed one of America’s treasures – quite possibly the most-discussed performance about a female athlete (ever) – the women’s downhill (i.e., “The Lindsay Vonn Show”).

Crazy, right?

Yesterday, when Vonn performed, I sent around the NYTimes alert saying Vonn had won the gold with the message “yay!” One of my WomenTalkSports friends was a little annoyed that I had ruined the surprise. She apparently was waiting in anticipation to watch in on TV later that night.

While I understand where she’s coming from, that’s not the world that I live in. I don’t “wait” for things anymore. I demand access to real-time updates and breaking news stories because that’s what I deserve as a consumer. And that’s exactly what NBC should be broadcasting.

The world of “primetime” is, in my opinion, somewhat fabricated. NBC wants us to live in a world that’s very far from reality. Vonn won the gold before any of us got to see it.  And that, my friends, is a disservice to society as a whole.

Broadcast journalists have a career because we allow them to. Broadcast networks exist because the Federal Communications Commission grants them publicly-owned broadcast licenses (FCC is funded with Congressional money, i.e., our taxes), and regulates that they commit to three key things: diversity, localism and serving the public interest.

What could be more of a “public interest” than the Olympics? Broadcasters should do due-diligence and not only cover the Olympics, but do so live, in a real-time reality that we all live in, everyday. NBC is doing a disservice to the public by choosing not to. And we, as citizens, should demand more.

This article from Deadspin says that NBC really doesn’t have a POV on this. Apparently, they think Olympics are sports for people who don’t care about sports, and many Americans don’t really care what time they see the games.

Apparently, the hard-core sports fans are the only ones really upset by this issue. But sports fans are citizens, too. Citizens with a voice, and like me, they’re starting express their feelings. It will be interesting to see if anything changes in 2012.

Bottom line: there has to be a live broadcast coverage. In my opinion, this is something that should be demanded by us, right now.

Heather Kearney, USA Olympic Gold Medalist. Photo credit: nbcolympics.com

If you didn’t see it last night, you missed a great performance.

No, I’m not talking about Apolo Ohno, who (luckily) snagged a silver in the men’s speedskating short track competition.

I’m talking about Hannah Kearney, the Olympic mogul skier from Hanover, New Hampshire, who beat the pants off of her competitors and brought home the United States’ first gold medal at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. (NBC coverage is located here in case you missed it)

Kearney entered the 2010 Olympics with the lead qualifying score, 25.96. Kearney skied what NBC commentators called “textbook skiing,” or a very clean run, earning a score of 26.63 and winning the gold medal. The run pushed Canadian opponent Jennifer Heil to silver, and USA teammate Shannon Bahrke to bronze.

If you aren’t familiar with moguls skiing (don’t worry, I’m not either), here’s a little background:

- moguls are are a series of bumps on a trail formed when skiers push the snow into mounds or piles as they execute short-radius turns.

- competitors are scored in three different ways: turns score, air score, and speed score. The combined score is based upon all three areas – whoever has the highest score wins.

- During a competition run, contestants must navigate around the moguls and execute tricks. Some common tricks include: 360 X, twister, spread, Daffy, cork-720, and backflip.

Watch this video to see a little background on Heather:

Daily News leveraging YouTube Direct. Photo credit: rockyfu.com

Some recent, exciting news – YouTube Direct launched. This post discusses why it’s important for those in the sports world to pay attention to it.

Essentially, YouTube Direct is a platform which allows media sites to permit users to upload videos to YouTube without leaving the media site (see picture to the right). So far, those to take advantage of this new (free) API are mostly traditional news sites – The Huffington Post, NPR, Politico and the San Francisco Chronicle.

Why should people in the sports world care? It all has to do with broadcast media and the diversification of sporting event content.

(First, if you haven’t done so already, read my recent post on NCAA and social media: Friends?.)

Here’s my thinking…

One of my key criticisms of (some, not all) NCAA athletic departments was the fact that many of them aren’t open to the idea of sharing. In particular, I think they don’t broadcast their video content online nearly as much as they should. By limiting themselves to their local markets, they’re limiting their reach to a small, geographic area.

On the national level, let’s face it – not all sports are broadcast on TV. First, there’s just not enough space and licenses. Primary spots are given to “primary” sporting events. Meanwhile, all the others stay within the reach of their local media (which can be quite limiting).

But in both of these situations, there are a few constants – the fans and the athletes.

YouTube Direct can change the broadcast/localism/”space” problem in sports by allowing fans and athletes to publish their own video.

For example,  a female athlete rugby player (who maybe struggles to get media attention) can upload highlight videos to a primary news outlet and potentially get national attention and exposure. This (literally) doesn’t cost the media outlet anything to implement (no reporters, no camera crews, nothing), and benefits the rugby player tremendously. People now know she and her sport exist.

The media can benefit, too. For example, a site like ESPN.com could leverage a platform like YouTube Direct to allow sports fans from all walks of life to broadcast their own footage, and let it live and breathe within their own domain and brand (with their own ads). This idea promotes user loyalty, and adds value to everyone involved – the network, the fans AND the advertisers. Not only that, but the users now have a vested interest in the business as a whole and the content they helped to create.

A concept like YouTube Direct (or – as I like to call it – “sharing“) quite literally smashes the entire concept of  what we consider “mass media,” puts control back into the hands of the fans and athletes, and diversifies content for a longtail economy. Over time, these videos become noticeable and valuable to advertisers because they reach millions of people. A potential money-maker? Maybe.

Granted, I’m new to discussions about sports broadcasting, so I’m perfectly willing to admit if any of this is wrong/far-fetched.

In fact, I have a few questions – Who do you think will be the first to leverage this service in the sports world? Will sports fans adopt/upload their own videos? Will broadcast TV networks compete? Why? What are the economic implications with this?

For more information on YouTube Direct, go here: http://www.youtube.com/user/Direct

If you’re like me and you live in the New York City market, there’s a great being event held the day after (Thursday) with Girls, Inc., which might be worth checking out (or at least promoting). Below is the press release.  Some cool sports chicks will be there!

Girls Incorporated of New York City to host National Girls and Women in Sports Day

New York, New York

Based on research conducted by the Women’s Sports Foundation showing that females who participate in high school sports are more likely to attend college than those who did not participate in sports, Girls Incorporated of New York City will hold their 2^nd Annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day event on February 4, 2010 in partnership with The Urban Assembly.

Seven outstanding women leaders including Phaidra Knight, a USA National Rugby Team member, Amanda Kraus, founder and Executive Director of Row New York, Kristina Marchitto, founder of the Yoga Project, Erika Mehalick, head softball coach at The Stevens Institute of Technology, Crissy Van Meter, Associate Editor for ESPN Action Sports, Kim Puntillo, the first woman to run a marathon on every continent, and Agatha Wasilewska, action sports writer for Transworld. The speakers will share their experiences, promote careers in athletics, and encourage a healthy lifestyle with the girls.

Further, the Women’s Sports Foundation released a report last month showing that females from lower economic backgrounds and females of color are less likely to engage in physical activity, have less access to sport and physical fitness programs, and suffer negative health consequences as a result. Research also confirms that engagement in moderate, consistent levels of physical activity is essential to good health and well being.

National Girls and Women in Sports Day recognizes the progress of girls and women in sports and the benefits that sports and fitness activities can bring to the lives of all girls and women. The Day is organized nationally by Girls Incorporated, Girl Scouts of the USA, National Association for Girls and Women in Sport, the National Women’s Law Center and the Women’s Sports Foundation.

The mission of Girls Incorporated of New York City is to inspire all girls to be strong, smart, and bold.  The mission is carried out by providing innovative evidence based educational programs to girls ages 6-18 in the areas of media literacy, economic literacy, science, math, technology, health, sexuality, substance abuse prevention, self-defense, college & career exploration and sports & adventure.

For more information:
Jennifer Weidenbaum, Associate Executive Director
212-531-7620 or Jennifer@girlsincnyc.org

NCAA is jumping on the social media bandwagon. Photo credit: biojobblog.com

I’d like to extend a huge “welcome!” to NCAA collegiate athletic departments – it seems that this year, you may have finally realized the power of technology in bringing fans into your stadiums. Well, at least some of you have.

What am I talking about? Well, apparently, a panel of [experts?] convened at an NCAA education session and came up with the following finding:

“Programs willing to invest in effective communication can reap far greater support than at any time in their history.”

Couldn’t agree more. I’m just left a little confused as to why it took a panel of experts AND so much time to figure this out. These tools have been around forever. The only thing I can come up with is that there are some weird regulations out there that I don’t know about. Or athletic departments weren’t willing to lose control of their information. But now they don’t have any choice, and control is being relinquished. I guess that’s innovation?

NCAA institutions (especially schools which have strong female programs) should be doing everything they can to get fans, even if that means going online. Free tools exist, starting with Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. These are ways to connect with people and keep them engaged, and sports fans are some of the most faithful users. Embrace it.

So I have to ask the question -  sports information directors, where the heck have you been?

You’ve got a lot of work to do. You need to show me why my friends and I should care about you. What makes you different and cool? What makes you indispensable?

The NCAA panel was right – unlike any other time in history, there’s a huge opportunity here. But like the millions of Americans who are out of work or suffering in the economic depression, you’ve got some proving to do. Here are a few things to think about:

1) Don’t turn anyone away.

When I (a small, yet proactive blogger who has an interest in your team) calls you to ask for media credentials, please don’t tell me you “don’t do blogs” (yes, it’s happened). That just makes my heart hurt. Who are you waiting for? ESPN?

This type of attitude certainly doesn’t make friends. Embrace any type of journalism that comes your way. Give up some control and trust us. It’s a rare thing these days.

2) Make your site content portable.

Online, the only thing I can access is your Web site. Some of your Web sites don’t even have RSS feeds. I just don’t have enough time in my day to manually check your site after each game.  You need to make the content sharable and flexible. Create a Fan page for your teams. Let them have their own followings. Engage. Let go.

3) Give fans a voice.

Peter Robert Casey tweets live from St. John's sidelines. Photo credit: sportsin140.com

Chances are PRETTY good that during the year, you’ve got some popular fans in your stands (some of which probably have localized networks of at least 1,000 people). That’s a pretty big opportunity.

For example, the St. John’s basketball program capitalized. One of my Twitter friends, Peter Robert Casey tweets from the slideline of the St. Johns basketball games, and he’s given full access to the team. Pretty cool opportunity (meaning he doesn’t even need to be paid). Suddenly, St. Johns matters. Not only to Peter, but to all those who follow him – his entire network. St. Johns has a presence, a story, and an authentic voice. Now that’s valuable.

4) Give players a voice.

Let them tweet. Let them blog. Let them connect with other teams. Let them have a Facebook account. (but give them boundaries – too many pictures can be a bad thing) These public places allow athletes to have a personality and a face. These are important. Let them connect.

5) Embrace online video. Offer it for free.

The biggest opportunity in intercollegiate athletics is to publish your own online video, something that’s so easy to implement. The only live video coverage I’ve seen of women’s basketball (I choose women’s basketball because that’s where my interest lies, though this can be applied to many different sports and genders) is on TV.

And that’s rare, often broadcast from national networks like ESPN, local networks like Comcast or newly emerging conference networks like the Big Ten Network (which airs on TV and charges $2.99 per game to watch online). Some sites like D3hoops.com offer live video during the Final Four. If there are others out there, I haven’t found them.

But that’s not enough. I know that coaches film every game. In fact, coaches swap video tapes to each other (for free) for scouting purposes. Why can’t we just take that type of sharing and do it online? Why can’t fans have access? You can even broadcast the event live from your Web site using a program like UStream. Very easy. Again, a huge opportunity.

I could probably keep going all night, but I wanted to get my initial thoughts out there. I would LOVE to hear what others think about this, as it’s a trend that I believe we’ll continue to see this year.

…now of only we could get my friend Q McCall, one of the best women’s basketball bloggers out there, into the Seton Hall games…