Michael Vick

Overtime Post – Thanksgiving for Sports Fans

by |November 28th, 2010

It was business for me as usual this week since I celebrated Thanksgiving last month, although I wouldn’t mind a second helping of turkey. Regardless,  I want to do a short list of things that I’m thankful for this year as a sports fan.

  1. Vancouver 2010 Olympics: Not only was it the time of my life in my hometown, but there were plenty of great stories there, from strategies to rivalries to upstarts. I also relished the opportunity to learn a lot more about smaller amateur sports.
  2. Youtube: As excited as I am about athletes tweeting me back, there’s no social media tool that’s influenced my sports experience as much as Youtube. I’m now able to see Canucks hockey highlights in full HD anytime I want, mashups of comedic sports ads, and….
  3. Blake Grffin. Yikes. White man jumps high. Way high. Billy Hoyle would approve.


What are you thankful for this thanksgiving in the world of sports? Let me know in the comments below. Now this week’s posts… [click to continue…]

About Sam Chan

Sam is the community manager of Sports Networker and the Sports Executive Association. He is passionate in all things sports, mobile, and social media. His dream is for the Vancouver Canucks to win a Stanley Cup in his lifetime, although so far, its looking kind of bleak. In the past, he worked with BlackBerry and helped relaunch their Business-to-Business network. With his experience there, he can probably help you change your ringtone, maybe. When he finds time (never), he also writes infrequently at his personal blog. If you would like to talk sports, write a guest post for us, or argue about why iPhone > BlackBerry, you can find him on Twitter, Facebook or email.

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Overtime Post – Pros and Cons of Athletes on Twitter

by |November 21st, 2010

Through out this whole week, we’ve had ongoing discussions about the pros and cons of professional athletes using social media to build their brands and engage with fans. Twitter, specifically has been a hot topic due to Tiger Woods making a re-entrance to the space.

Since this is the internet, it’s expected that the general consensus supports the notion of athletes using Twitter and other social media tools, but the truth of the matter is Twitter has also gotten some athletes into some hot water, ie. Brandon Jennings, Michael Beasley, Charlie Villanueva…(or maybe the bad combination is Twitter and basketball players). Although the future definitely looks to ‘more’, is there a way to balance that authenticity?  [click to continue…]

About Sam Chan

Sam is the community manager of Sports Networker and the Sports Executive Association. He is passionate in all things sports, mobile, and social media. His dream is for the Vancouver Canucks to win a Stanley Cup in his lifetime, although so far, its looking kind of bleak. In the past, he worked with BlackBerry and helped relaunch their Business-to-Business network. With his experience there, he can probably help you change your ringtone, maybe. When he finds time (never), he also writes infrequently at his personal blog. If you would like to talk sports, write a guest post for us, or argue about why iPhone > BlackBerry, you can find him on Twitter, Facebook or email.

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Will Michael Vick’s Road to Redemption Ever End?

by |September 29th, 2010

54 for 89 (60% completions). 6 passing touchdowns. 1 rushing touchdown. 0 interceptions. And a QB rating of 110.2. Those are Michael Vick’s numbers three weeks into the 2010 NFL season. Vick started the season as backup to Kevin Kolb. But after a Week 1 Kolb concussion and a dominant Week 2 performance by Vick in his place, head coach Andy Reid made the decision to give Vick the chance he’d been waiting several years for, to be a starting quarterback in the National Football League once again.

But this post is not about Michael Vick the football player, it is about Michael Vick the person. [click to continue…]

About Sam Taggart

Sam is a Creative Strategist for VaynerMedia, a social media agency based in New York City. Sam previously worked as an Account Executive for the New York Jets as well as the New Jersey Nets and spent time working with former NBA player Jalen Rose as well as NFL safety Kerry Rhodes. He now focuses on creative strategy across VaynerMedia's portfolio. You can follow Sam at http://twitter.com/gosam & visit VaynerMedia at http://www.vaynermedia.com.

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These Athletes Should Be on Twitter

by |September 17th, 2009

michael vick

For professional athletes, Twitter can be an incredibly valuable tool. It is a way to connect with current fans and to earn new ones. It is also an alternative to traditional media, providing direct access the public. Twitter is a tool for crisis management, where athletes can accept criticism and attempt to change opinions. Most importantly, Twitter serves as a channel where athletes can show off their personality, the side the public does not normally get to see. There are many, many athletes on Twitter, from average players to superstars. But I can think of a few in particular who are not on and should be.

#1. Michael Vick [click to continue…]

About Sam Taggart

Sam is a Creative Strategist for VaynerMedia, a social media agency based in New York City. Sam previously worked as an Account Executive for the New York Jets as well as the New Jersey Nets and spent time working with former NBA player Jalen Rose as well as NFL safety Kerry Rhodes. He now focuses on creative strategy across VaynerMedia's portfolio. You can follow Sam at http://twitter.com/gosam & visit VaynerMedia at http://www.vaynermedia.com.

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Vick Has His Say, But Do We Believe Him? Does It Matter?

by |August 19th, 2009

vickDespite lots of competition, the lead sports public relations story continues to be former Atlanta Falcons quarterback, Michael Vick.

Since we last met, the Philadelphia Eagles signed Vick to a one-year contract for $1.6 million with a second-year option worth $5.2 million and incentives.

Vick, for those who aren’t familiar with his story, served 18 months in federal prison for bankrolling a dog fighting ring. He was reinstated by the National Football League last month after being out of action since 2006.

In his first interview since being released from Leavenworth, Vick told CBS Sports’ James Brown on “60 Minutes” that he deserved to lose $135 million, which is what his Falcons contract would have paid. [click to continue…]

About Gail Sideman

Twenty years of public relations experience, including 10 in NCAA Division I sports information during which she received national awards for her work, have helped Gail Sideman emerge as a nationally-respected publicity professional in sports, social media and publishing. She is also a veteran support staffer of sports television crews for events that include the NFL, NBA, MLB, NCAA regular and postseason and others. You may learn more information about Sideman's business at www.publiside.com or follow her at www.twitter.com/PUBLISIDE and www.facebook.com/gail.sideman.

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Sports Images Take a Beating, Making Effective PR All the More Important

by |August 13th, 2009

Michael VickThe sports industry has been fraught with public relations challenges the past 10 days. When I began to form this post in my head, the “only” examples were Michael Vick, Brett Favre, Plaxico Burress and Major League Baseball. Today I add to that the National Football League and ESPN.

What could be more appropriate for sports PR case studies than Vick, the former Atlanta Falcons quarterback who spent 18 months in prison for running a dogfighting ring, was recently conditionally reinstated by the National Football League and hopes to earn a roster spot and respect; Favre, the three-time NFL MVP quarterback who’s trying to delete the last line of his bio written by critics that identify him as an all-pro waffler after he retired in 2008 from the Green Bay Packers, unretired to play for the New York Jets, retired and after months of speculation, courting, consideration and biceps rehabilitation, told his former NFC nemesis, Minnesota Vikings, he wasn’t coming out of retirement again, after all; Burress, who was indicted by a grand jury on three weapons counts in New York after shooting himself in a nightclub last fall; or Major League Baseball, that endured another leak of premier players (Manny Ramirez and [click to continue…]

About Gail Sideman

Twenty years of public relations experience, including 10 in NCAA Division I sports information during which she received national awards for her work, have helped Gail Sideman emerge as a nationally-respected publicity professional in sports, social media and publishing. She is also a veteran support staffer of sports television crews for events that include the NFL, NBA, MLB, NCAA regular and postseason and others. You may learn more information about Sideman's business at www.publiside.com or follow her at www.twitter.com/PUBLISIDE and www.facebook.com/gail.sideman.

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