Social media is becoming a trend among athletes

Shaquille O'Neal / Keith Allison / Flickr

Social media is both a damaging and potent tool many athletes use today. Athletes can talk to their fans and make them feel a part of his or her life in a matter of seconds. However, the speed of social media also allows players to type, but not think of the consequences of what they are saying. Social media has become such a factor in sports, that some athletes use it to make a case for more money on their contracts.

Players past their prime often use social media to expand their market and still make money even though they do not perform as well as they did before on their field of play. Chad Ochocinco is a prime example of this. Ochocinco has three million followers, but has career lows in yards and receptions, despite that his New England Patriots jersey is one of the highest selling in the NFL.

Another example of a player whose salary depends on his popularity is Shaquille O’Neal . Shaq has 4.7 million followers, but has not averaged more than 20 ppg in almost five seasons. Even though Shaq has not performed well on the court, he made $15 million dollars in endorsements.

Twitter can be an asset, but more often then not it damages athletes and their reputation. Dutch midfielder Ryan Babel was fined 10,000 pounds for posting a picture of a referee wearing a Manchester United jersey who directed their game against Manchester United. Arizona Cardinals defensive lineman Darnell Dockett was fined for tweeting 20 minutes before the game. This is not the first time that Dockett got in trouble for one of his tweets. Before the season started he tweeted about bringing one of his many guns to work and was criticized heavily by the media.

Social media has become such a factor in sports in the NFL, they have chosen to speak to rookies about how to use social media and the dangers that come with it. Other leagues such as the NCAA and the NBA have followed. Now coaches and teams are not worried about what a player says to a reporter, but are now worried about what he or she types on the Internet. Due to this, many leagues have been forced to adapt to social media, but now are cautioning their players about what social media can do.