WPSL Allows Gametime “Tweets”
Monday, March 23rd, 2009
In-game Twitter posts might be a technical foul of sorts in the NBA, but at least one sports league is embracing the idea of having players use the social networking Web site during a game.
The new Women’s Professional Soccer league will allow selected players to post short Twitter notes, called “tweets,” during its inaugural game between the Los Angeles Sol and Washington Freedom on March 29, league communications director Robert Penner said.
General managers from the new seven-team league approved the idea in a conference call Friday. Depending on fan response, league officials are considering allowing players to tweet during games all season.
They still must work out some of the details, including which players will tweet and when they’ll be allowed to do so; starters, obviously, likely would be limited to pregame, postgame and halftime.
The league’s decision stands in sharp contrast to the NBA, where Milwaukee Bucks coach Scott Skiles reprimanded forward Charlie Villanueva for posting a tweet during halftime of Sunday’s victory over Boston. Skiles said it could be interpreted as a sign that Villanueva wasn’t focused on the game.
Villanueva agreed to stop tweeting during games but still isn’t sure he did anything wrong; he argued that posting to Twitter isn’t much different from doing a short television interview at halftime.
Chris Jenkins (AP)
