Swiss Soccer Player Expelled From Olympics Over Tweet - PC Magazine

Social networks have allowed us to stay better connected to the Olympics this year than ever before - whether we're following our favorite athletes or complaining about access to live feeds of the competitions.

But quick access to Twitter during the games has proved problematic for some athletes - and one L.A.-based journalist.

Days after Greek triple jumper Paraskevi Papachristou was banned from competing in the games thanks to a racist tweet, a Swiss soccer player has been banned for a similarly insensitive message.

After his team lost to South Korea on Sunday, Michel Morganella, a member of the Swiss soccer team, tweeted that the South Koreans could "go burn" and called them "a bunch of mongoloids," the AP reported.

In a translated statement, Gian Gilli, Chef de Mission of the Swiss Olympic delegation, condemned Morganella's statements and withdrew the player's Olympic accreditation.

In his own statement, Morganella said he "made a big mistake."

"I'm truly sorry for the people of South Korea, for the footballers, but also for the Swiss delegation and the Swiss football in general," Morganella continued. "Of course, I bear the consequences."

The Football Association will decide on any other penalties at a later date.

Greece's Papachristou, meanwhile, was expelled for tweeting: "With so many Africans in Greece... the West Nile mosquitoes will at least eat homemade food!!!"

Twitter Account Deleted for Tweeting Exec's Email
Guy Adams - who serves as Los Angeles bureau chief for The Independent - had his Twitter account suspended for tweeting the email of an NBC executive, according to an article he posted this morning.

On Friday, Adams was annoyed that NBC decided to air the Opening Ceremony in primetime rather than broadcasting a live feed. He tweeted about it in a series of messages, one of which encouraged followers to email Gary Zenkel, president of NBC Olympics, with their complaints.

Adams subsequently appeared on an LA talk radio station to discuss the subject and wrote an article about it for his paper. By Sunday afternoon, however, he tried to log on to Twitter and found that his account had been suspended. After filling out an online form, an automated response told Adams that his account had been suspended for "posting an individual's private information, such as private email address."

In an email to Twitter PR, Adams accused the micro-blogging site of "shutting down the Twitter accounts of journalists who are critical of their Olympic coverage."

Twitter did not immediately respond to a request for comment. According to the Twitter Rules, "You may not publish or post other people's private and confidential information, such as credit card numbers, street address or Social Security/National Identity numbers, without their express authorization and permission."

Last week, the company announced a partnership with NBC Olympics, which included the creation of an event page for the 2012 Olympics.

According to Adams, NBC Sports said it filed a complaint with Twitter because Adams tweeted the "personal information of one of our executives."

For more from Chloe, follow her on Twitter @ChloeAlbanesius.