Facebook and the Twitter revolution have changed the way the world communicates.  Now we can share our lives – and our innermost thoughts – instantaneously – with anyone who will listen!

Over the past several months, however, athletes and celebrities have jumped on the social media freight train, and it’s not always resulted in positive public relations.  Especially when it comes to an athlete’s “fan base”.  Good, bad or indifferent, there are people out there waiting to egg a celebrity on – create a story, circumstance, or lawsuit, based on (in all intents and purposes) a text message.

Former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver, Santonio Holmes, led the charge earlier this year when he told a Twitter follower to kill himself.  Not long after that incident, the NFL player then greeted Twitter followers with the message that it was “time to wake and bake”.

The slang term describes the action of smoking marijuana immediately upon waking from sleep.  The Pittsburgh Steelers subsequently traded Holmes to the New York Jets, whereupon his arrival he received a four-game suspension for violating the league’s substance abuse policy.

Also in the NFL, Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver, Chad Ochocinco, was fined $25,000 for Tweeting during the preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Ocho, apparently bored with the game, violated the prohibited period when players can use social media – 90 minutes prior to kickoff and until post-game media.  But the StubPass staff admits, the man can dance.  And can look manly doing it.  Seriously.  That’s one hell of a six-pack.

Former Kansas City Chiefs running back Larry Johnson also found himself in Twitter trouble, after posting a homophobic slur in response to a fan’s post, after the Chiefs suffered a loss to the San Diego Chargers.  Johnson was fined $213,000 and was eventually let go by Kansas City.

But Twitter isn’t just impacting the lives of NFL players and their followers.  The NBA fined Milwaukee Bucks player Brandon Jennings $7,500, after the player tweeted his excitement that the team had finally got back to “500”.

While there was no harm intended, Jennings violated the zero-tolerance rule of no tweeting during – or 45 minutes before and after – a game. Other NBA players who have received the same fines include New York Knicks’ Amar’e Stoudemire and Dallas Mavericks’ Tyson Chandler.

Many believe that athletes should censor their opinions, especially through social media platforms.  Others believe that those with celebrity status are revealing their true personalities when posting tweets or updates on the fly.

It is evident that sports organizations are recognizing the impact of social media, as they scramble to implement rules, codes of conduct and similar policies across the board.

What say you?  Should professional sports organizations monitor the “social media” of its employees?

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