Might as Well Tax the Air

From the land that brought us the Stamp Act and the organization who thinks they can control the world, here's a snippet of the social media rules for anyone at the London Olympics. The passage is from the NYT story on how the IOC has faced the tidal wave of social tools. Athletes and spectators face restrictions, too. Neither will be permitted to post video footage of sporting events to online forums. Participants are allowed to post on blogs or Twitter, but the postings must be in a “first-person, diary-type format and should not be in the role of a journalist,” the guidelines state. “They must not report on competition or comment on the activities of other participants or accredited persons, or disclose any information which is confidential or private in relation to any other person or organization,” the rules say. Reminds me of the prophetic words of Dan Gillmor during my panel at CoSIDA in 2004 at San Diego - what would the IOC do when HD cameras were in the stands. Strikes me as a pair of dinosaurs trying to desperately aid each other - the IOC to keep any news from escaping the rights holders and then the absurd desire to protect "accredited persons" (read: the credentialed legacy media, the long-time hand maiden of the IOC). Um, the people formerly known as the audience have opinions. And observations. And the IOC might want to get them on their side.