Cooley Talks Good And Bad Social Media
Posted by Brian Tinsman on December 2, 2011 – 12:16 pm
There is no question that Twitter has changed the sports world that we know and love, from fans, to media, and especially to players. Players can now be known, loved and scrutinized on a whole new level, and the private life of an athlete is quickly eroding.
These were just some of the topics of discussion at last night’s SB Nation presents “BWBDC Thursday Night Watch Party & Chalk Talk,” which featured Redskins tight end and social media darling Chris Cooley.
Chris–with the help of his brother Tanner–has been on the cutting edge of social media with his player blog (and his brother has branched out into SportsBuzz) and Twitter. While he has admittedly grown more guarded in the last two years, he’s always recognized the benefits of social media:
“For me, I’ve used it to show people my real personality,” he said. ”Coming into the league, I was out of Utah State, and I looked like Ricky Bobby on camera, with my hands. I was so awkward, I was so uncomfortable in front of people–I was an introverted kid.”
He continued: “Being able to work with my brother, who ran my blog, and be able to do what I wanted to do, allowed me to show people my personality in a comfortable way,” he siad. ”I can edit what I’m doing, I can put out whatever I’m doing, and I can show people whatever I want.”
The other positive element of Twitter, which Cooley has frequently employed, is his ability to reach the masses for charity.
“I have 100,000 followers, and if I want to do something in terms of charity, I can put it out there and 100,000 people will see it,” he said. ”And if it’s good, or if it’s funny, a lot more people than that will see it.”
In general, Cooley has nothing but good things to say about social media, but he also runs into “trolls” on the Internet, and is constantly amazed by their boldness.
“There are a lot of good things that get tweeted, and that’s the majority of what’s said. But I find out every week how horrible of a player I am,” he said. ”As a player and someone who checks Twitter, the things that stand out are the negatives. And it’s hard not to dwell on that.”
“I think that’s why you’re starting to see players fire back. I think it’s very hard not be effected by it, but as a player, you have to try very hard not to be. It’s amazing how personal it can become.”
Cooley shared a few other funny anecdotes–and a few not so funny examples–of how social media affects the lives of players. He was sure to note that he is a big fan of Twitter and the like, but understood the plight of athletes that make mistakes or get attacked. At the end of the day though, he credited social media for growing national and global interest in the game.
“Growing interest in the NFL is ultimately good for the game,” he concluded. ”Ultimately, the more interest that gets generated for the game–and trust me, there is so much interest in this country for this game–is going to help grow what we’re doing right now.”
A big thanks to SB Nation for the event, and to Chris Cooley for provided a candid player’s perspective. Moral of the story, is that next time you consider trolling an athlete, just remember that they do read what’s being said.
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