One of the first questions we ask when we start class is “Who is the media?”
Usually the first answers are the ones you would expect…reporters, bloggers, podcasters, etc. etc.…and then usually someone comes up with the real answer…any one a device that can transmit information to an audience…
In short…you, or anyone else with access to the digital world and some sort of mobile device.
Realizing that “the media” is everyone, it makes it a little easier to understand and grasp the concept of “always on,” especially if you spend any time in the public eye. The ability for anyone to be able to capture and share images…floods and tornadoes, crimes and rainbows, joy and sadness…has never been easier, and with that comes the challenges of a society that is always looking, we watching, and asking questions later. It is a race to be first and engaged vs. slower and accurate many times, and the ability to be self-aware and always on continues to provide examples.
One issue for those in the limelight or the public eye is the hot mic, and twice in the past few weeks the mic…left on that captured sound meant for a private conversation…has created big time issues in Major League Baseball. First was Cincinnati Reds veteran announcer, who used a homophobic slur when he thought he was off air, and then this past week Mets General Manager Brodie Van Wagenen had a private conversation where he criticized MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred while sitting in front of an open microphone feed in a quiet and unoccupied press room, quickly went viral and caused a great deal of angst and backpedaling for the team and the league. Those two issues have been different from the occasional foul words uttered and caught by microphones around live action in games in empty stadia, or even the off color remarks issued by public figures in places like the US Senate, but they serve as cautionary reminders that technology has opened windows for engagement that can left the average consumer into areas where they haven’t been before, and while that can be fun and engaging, it can also be damaging for when the guard gets let down.
In the case of the Mets, the randomness was amplified even more when the New York Post’s Andrew Marchand explained that the clip came to light because a young Mets fan happened to be looking for game information on Mets.com and stumbled across a live feed that wasn’t intended to be live. The discovery and the sharing of the video by University of Maryland student Nick Albicocco, to an audience of less than 500 followers on a slightly rainy early Thursday night, lit the match for controversy. The mic provided the random spark.
The access of audio and video to capture the personalities and the drama around live athletics has been going on for years, and has been refined and applauded in shows like “Hard Knocks,” or in the all access opportunities that almost every sport now provides. That access is gold for brands, and for consumers wanting a little bit more, and while it sometimes leads to unintended issues (The New York Jets Sam Darnold last year uttering during a Monday Night Football loss to the New England Patriots that he was “seeing ghosts” is one example) and lots of hands covering mouths on the sidelines and even sometimes on the field, the access for the insider’s view will continue on.
For those in the public eye, “Always On” can be a pain and really lends itself more to the self-aware than to the self-deprecating. Thinking before you speak is always the rule in highly public places, but knowing where the mic is at all times, especially as technology advances, is becoming more and more of a tantamount priority to avoid pratfalls which can be bumps in the road or career changers, depending on the content.
The double edge sword of access needed and access used beyond the norm is a tough one, so the advice is pretty simple…speak softly, speak carefully and now look around and see what’s near, in places public and semipublic. Better to say less and be aware of the ears and phones and eyes around, than to say too much and backtrack toward damage. Tough to do for sure, but an ounce of prevention so to speak, is worth the proverbial pound of cure now more than ever.
