There is a considerable amount of negative attention given to student-athletes and their use of social media (specifically, Twitter).  Daily, I tweet out links to stories about coaches banning it, how dangerous it is for student-athletes to use it, how there is no value in kids using it, sports writers talking about how kids are too irresponsible to use Twitter and should have it taken away, details of the mistakes that student-athletes make online. 1 link out of every 15 might be positive (and I’m probably being generous with that ratio). In just the last 72 hours we’ve seen an AHL player suspended, a college football team ban Twitter, and a journalist describe student-athletes and social media as a “dangerous combination.”

Everybody has an opinion. Everybody is an expert. Everybody, apparently, uses Twitter perfectly. Other than student-athletes, of course.

With so much negativity surrounding it, with student-athletes being told that there is danger around every corner, that they are going to screw up their own image as well as that of their university, how can we expect anything besides negative results?

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