@Wood

This is why I didn’t get all wound up in the Wikipedia - Britannica wars.

Uh, that’s not the sign we use to indicate that it’s first down Bud.

Brilliant. Like a lot of people, I’ve been waiting for resources such as A&I databases to show up on mobile devices and this one from ASP is a perfect match of content and platform. We don’t subscribe to this database, so I won’t be able to test it out personally, but I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it will work out well.

Having said that, I’m more than a little concerned about just how well vendors will adapt their products to the small screen. Just porting over their current web version won’t work. Things will have to be redesigned from the bottom up. Still, I’m hopeful that they’ll get it right.

Here’s another example of the clash between sports and technology. There’s no question that Elizabeth Lambert’s actions here on this video are not acceptable. I’d like to play devil’s advocate, though, and ask the following question. Should players be sanctioned after the fact for actions that were not seen and punished during the game itself?

We know that players can be punished, for example, if they are seen in pictures getting drunk at a party. That’s a violation of team rules, but it’s not necessarily a violation of the specific rules of the game. In Elizabeth’s instance, she got away with something and got a yellow card for another foul. Should she be punished further if the illegal action wasn’t spotted during the game?

College sports are, of course, different from pro sports in the sense that off field behavior is more regulated. I’m not sure what the answer is, but as this author states, it’s going to be harder for offensive behavior to go unnoticed.

Well, the ax finally fell. Larry Johnson’s out at KC. Of course, Johnson’s problems started long before he signed up for a Twitter account, but the ability to shoot his mouth off to the whole Twitterverse didn’t help his situation there.

I’m not sure what will happen with Larry Johnson, but smart teams should look at this episode and start planning for a smart, fair, and realistic social media policy for their players. I guess we’ll have to wait and see, however, how many carry through with it.

This is amazing. We’ve seen social media used to mobilize people before - saving a favorite albeit not highly rated show for example, but this it taking it to a whole new level and Scot Pioli is caught between a rock and a hard place.

Let’s say he ignores them. If it’s just a small handful of the Chiefs faithful, then it probably won’t be a big deal. If they can muster enough support to have an economic impact, though, then that could cause several different problems least of which is poor press. What happens if he caves into them and takes further action against Johnson? Well, it might encourage other fan groups to organize and bring pressure to bear on teams that don’t give in to their demands. Not a good situation.

For now, all we can do is wait and see, but the lesson is clear. Sports franchises need to get a handle on social networking tools and start leveraging them for their own use - and in a hurry. Who knows how many other “Larry Johnson’s” are out there waiting to explode in their faces.

You know that old saying about counting to 10 before you spout off about someone/thing? It’s the same in Twitter Larry Johnson.

Ouch.

Oh great, NOW he tells us.