This year’s Winter Olympics are going to commence in Vancouver Canada today and this year the committee has taken on the online social networking scene with a bang. This year, the committee has focused on the effects of Facebook and used this social network to get people talking about the Olympics. The international Olympic committee has established an official Facebook group that has a (huge) following of more than 1.2 million fans. This fan page gives visitors the opportunity to watch videos, see current updates and click on relevant links. With social networking comes controversy and recently some pictures of the opening ceremony were leaked on Facebook and Twitter. Even though there have been numerous leaks, the ceremony will still be an exciting and thrilling event.

There is not an official Twitter page for the Winter Olympics but one can visit the Verified Olympics list where some of the athletes’ Twitter accounts are listed. This gives die-hard fans the opportunity to follow their favourite athletes online and get some inside knowledge to what they are thinking and feeling.

There are some sports that do not seem to pull in the masses or get as many individuals watching the game as they would for example a rugby game. Hockey for instance. I’m not saying that hockey isn’t a good game; it just doesn’t seem to attract millions of followers. This is set to change however as an America team called the Washington Capitals has become highly popular due to their social networking outreach. Even though they are not viewed on television as much, this team has 95 000 fans on Facebook and 11 000 on Twitter. By using their social networking tools to the fullest extent, this team will gain more ticket sales and therefore have more supporters shouting at the sidelines of their games.

The question remains: will involvement in social networking increase the popularity of sports games and events? Sports have been highly successful in the past without social media and as long as sports remain entertaining for the masses, social media is not needed as a primary source to encourage individuals to attend games and support their favourite team or sporting person. It can however let these sporting experiences be shared with millions as groups can discuss games and post videos and photographs of the events on their social networking sites. Discussion is healthy and we all know that sporting discussions can turn into heated argument in 0.35 seconds, but isn’t that the fun of it anyway?

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Social Media and Sports: taking to the field on standing on the sidelines?

On my hunt for alternative sites, I came across Findasocialnetwork. This portal lets you type in your interests or hobbies and wham! Up pops a list of social network options for you to join. You can login to the site and become a member, add a social network that you have created and search for new sites. This makes me wonder though, findasocialnetwork is practically a social network itself, right?

Some social networks are slightly more “special” in their appeal, whereas others are just downright bizarre. One of the best and most original sites I came across on my search was Myweirdbeard. This site sees itself as “a place for personal growth,” literally. Submit photos and videos of your moustaches or goatees and join in the beard forum. I then decided to try and find a site that would help me figure out my recent spate of strange dreams. What I found was the sub conscious conversations of MatchAdream. Here you can submit your dream and connect with others who have experienced the same dream as you. I was relieved as I am sick of waking up blurry-eyed and trying to figure out what my weird dream was all about!

If you are a dog lover (like me) then why not let your precious pooch sign up for a Mydogspace account? I had heard a rumour that there was a Facebook equivalent just for pets, and here it is! As a member, your dog (ahem, you) can leave status updates, post pictures and chat with other canines. Even though I wouldn’t sign my dog up for this, the pictures on this site are just too adorable. I decided to turn my focus to something more anti social, and what I found was Hatebook. “Hatebook is an anti-social utility that disconnects you from the things you hate.” Here you can find your enemies, publish secrets and gossip and join hate groups. This site also lets you “take over the world.” I found this site rather ironic, I must admit.

However, if you fail to find a social networking site that touches your heart, (I was hoping to find a social networking site dedicated to Chai tea, but it returned no results), then why not just make your own? Creating a social network only takes a few minutes, but maintaining it is another matter.

Some of these social networking sites are just for fun, whereas others are very serious. If you are a superb multi-tasker and can remember countless usernames and passwords whilst remembering to update all your pictures and statuses, then multiple social networking sites are for you. I, on the other hand, prefer to manage fewer sites, but I am all about quality versus quantity.

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1. Casual social networking vs. corporate social networking
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Weird and wonderful social networking sites: time wasters unite!