After a tough loss this week, Robert Henson an inactive rookie from the Washington Redskins, tweeted “All you fake half hearted Skins fan can .. I won’t go there but I dislike you very strongly, don’t come to Fed Ex to boo dim wits!!”

He also wrote: “The question is who are you to say you know what’s best for the team and you work 9 to 5 at Mcdonalds.”

Understandably the team, management and veteran players were upset with him. Beyond the fact that he’s entirely wrong in this situation. Fans pay good money to watch a team and part of attending a game is the opportunity to boo or cheer even if it is your home team.

Again this is a situation of someone who is new to the public eye and making a comment that they would never send out through their press agent but don’t realize that their Twitter account is just or even more powerful than a press release.

The NFL and players association should encourage all players to embrace social media. Obviously not to participate in posting updates during team functions or anywhere that talking on a cell phone would be inappropriate. Fans continue to crave an inside perspective and Twitter provides a direct conduit from fans to players.

The NFL should immediately layout clear guidelines in regards to social media beyond their initial list of rules. Fines should be levied against those who break the rules. The NFL rookie symposium should dedicate at least a good 2-3 hours covering this but the NFL shouldn’t be scared of Twitter, they just need to learn how to make it work for them or this won’t be the last time we hear of this issue.

***UPDATE***
Robert Henson has not reacted by quitting Twitter. Maybe he couldn’t handle all the negative @replies but now he’s gone and cut the lifeline that would have also been his best way to redemption. Well done Mr. Henson.

***UPDATE II***
Busy day for NFL players and Twitter. Larry Fitzgerald’s brother is complaining via Twitter that Kurt Warner sucks.

It’s fair to say that Dahlism is pre-occupied with Twitter but when stories about President Obama calling Kanye West a “jackass” are broke on Twitter, then the world should realize how the lives of public officials and regular folk have changed. Even though his comment was “off-the record”, the casual nature of Twitter and easy of tweeting made this the perfect type of tweet to go viral.

Just another reminder that with great power comes great responsibility and Twitter provides you with both.

As celebrities and public figures continue to use Twitter as a mouthpiece for public relations they will also be held responsible and liable for every statement they post on Twitter, good or bad. Just like anyone, celebrities can be sensible or rude and clueless when it comes to their social media updates.

Recently I came across this great blog that is focused on new media and the law. Specifically the area of defamation on the internet. We all may be lulled into the feeling that just because it’s easy to make a statement online by just turning on your computer and posting a blog entry or Twitter update, these types of actions can be used in a court of law.

Recently internet celebrity and MTV personality Tila Tequila accused NFL star Shawne Merriman of choking and restraining her. He countered that he was only trying to keep her from leaving his home while intoxicated. The truth probably lies somewhere in between but because Tila Tequila decided to tweet numerous statements (that were subsequently deleted) that may have had incriminating in a court, the DA decided not to pursue charges against Merriman.

Perez Hilton, no stranger to lawsuits or Twitter spats, had it out with Kirstie Alley on Twitter. She was over the top on her comments while he maintained his composure and never threatened her. This all broke out because of his recent Twitter fight with Demi Moore regarding her daughters outfit.

Even as these celebs get more savvy so will the number of “famous for being famous” celebrities who have little or no PR experience and will wish to continue their 15 minutes through any medium available.

Perez Hilton vs. Demi & Ashton

Just as I take notice of the Tweet battle brewing between Tila Tequila and Shawne Merriman, an even juicer showdown is occurring between Perez Hilton (the most famous celebrity blogger in the world) and the Hollywood duo of Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher. Typically I might smell a celebrity PR stunt for publicity but since it involves Demi’s daughter Tallulah I feel it’s a legitimate squabble.

The LA Times blog has the details which involve a back and forth on (you guessed it!) Twitter. All three combatants happen to be among the most popular celebrities on Twitter and have been known to create PR buzz through other stunts played out on Twitter so this battle has the makings of a classic with a possible finale played out on Ustream for the world to watch.

Books can and will be written about how Perez Hilton, like Tila Tequila, became internet and then mainstream celebrities. He seems to be willing to take on the establishment of other celebrities who ply their craft via old school methods such as acting, singing, or participating in beauty pageants. What is ironic about his latest spat is that previously Perez railed against Miss California, Carrie Prejean, and in turn the born-again Christians as she stated her opinion on same-sex marriage which he vehemently disagrees with. This time he’s taking the “high-road” and criticizing Demi Moore’s 15-year old daughter, Tallulah, and the way she dresses which he finds inappropriate. If a parent starts taking child-rearing opinions from Perez Hilton then they’ve got bigger issues and methinks Demi is probably already over this.

p.s. – Perez weighs in on the D-List Twitter war between Rachel Zoe and a Real New York Housewife. Damn is Dahlism getting off track here! But hopefully this drives home a point.

Tila Tequila and Shawne Merriman

Celebrities used to be restrained by their PR firms who delicately leaked statements to the press and the eyes of public opinion were glued to mainstream media which were controlled by these spin gurus. But since social media (Twitter in particular) has been grasped by celebrities, they now have an unedited megaphone from which to spew their intelligence or lack thereof.

Social media has also given rise to personalities who have become celebs through these channels such as “Tila Tequila” who before MySpace would have had to rely on nightclub exploits covered by the tabloids to eventually become as popular as she is now and still would probably never reach the audience she currently speaks to.

This past weekend news broke that Shawne Merriman, a popular football player for the San Diego Chargers, was involved in a physical altercation with his girlfriend, Tila Tequila. Without delving into the details which are widely available online, what I’ve found most fascinating is how this has played out in our current state of digesting news. Mainstream media outlets such as CNN and the LA Times used to be the first to deliver news through a staff of investigative journalists but now these same journalists are following the same twitter feeds that anyone can subscribe to for statements directly from the celebrities themselves (or their web savvy PR consultants). Mr. Merriman may want to temper his tweets as he’s going up against one of the most savvy social media personalities of all-time in Tila Tequila. She’s risen to popularity by manipulating online audiences and media to meet her objectives which I assume are fame and minor fortune.

As you and the media continue to watch how this drama unfolds, be assured that it will be the first of many that are now played out as a live stream in your Twitter feed which is now the place to turn for breaking and ongoing news, especially from celebrities.