HOW SOCIAL MEDIA IS SHAPING THE MODERN DAY SPORTS PERSONALITIES

World leaders and big companies are currently battling with the imminent and much talked about 4^th Industrial Revolution. Social Media is also another issue which needs to be addressed as it is here to say and shaping the way we live. Whichever way you look at it, social media has been the best thing which came with technology and it has also brought some unfortunate incidents especially with most of our beloved sports personalities.  Be it politicians, big corporates, athletes or artists they also have benefited from the emergency of Social platforms but we have seen how some content has backfired.

As a Sport personality, most of them will agree with me that they have benefited from Social Media not only by gaining their popularity but also being able to advertise their various brands and a close interaction with their fans. Now most athletes are getting more money on brands they advertise on social media platforms compared to their own salaries. Unfortunately, such deals come with a price and that price is making sure you know what you post and how you post it. How an average sports person maintain such level of good manners is virtually impossible. It’s not a surprise that we have seen some of our favorite sport personalities going that route.

The one which caught my eye recently was that of now former Australian rugby player Israel Folau. The start of 2019 he became the record holder for most tries scored in Super Rugby then just after that things went south. After making damning homophobic comments, Folau was quoted saying “Hell awaits homosexuals”, whilst commenting on his Instagram account.  That was the start of his downfall as most of his sponsors labelled that comment as disappointing. He went on to lose his contract with Rugby Australia as well as that of his franchise which goes to show how social media can also be the downfall for some athletes.

Another recent online incident was that of Manchester City’s Bernado Silva who posted a picture of his longtime friend and teammate Benjamin Mendy which instantly was highly criticized as racist and Silva had to put it down and forced to apologize. Even though he labelled it as a joke with a friend, he was charged for it by FA and might possibly be facing a 5 match ban. To him it might have been a small incident but the consequences he’s going to face might as well tarnish his image as a professional footballer.

The other incidents which are of a problem caused by social media is that of cyber bullying and this has psychologically affected most of our sports personalities. As a sport professional, they always say you are as good as your previous game and we have seen how they get vilified when they perform badly and get praised when they do well. Tammy Abraham received racial comments on social media after he missed a crucial penalty for Chelsea against Liverpool. That can affect the player’s performance and now he’s currently the joint leading goal scorer in the English Premier League. Wilfred Zaha, Kurt Zouma, Raheem Sterling just to mention a few have all suffered racial comments on social media.

The biggest worry for me on behalf of most athletes out there is how cyber-bullying can be policed by authorities in order for our beloved sport personalities to be protected. On the other hand, our beloved athletes should be wary of what they post as they have an influence not only on their followers but in communities we live in. Social Media is here to stay and its benefits are something all the sporting codes will never complain as communication has now been made easier.