The Beijing Olympics was special for lots of reasons, but the application of modern information channels was not among them – thanks to the Chinese regime’s deep suspicion of free expression. 

But social media will play a big part in the run up to the London Olympics in 2012. So says Alex Balfour, a regular Twitter poster and  head of new media for London 2012. Balfour has interesting plans to involve the public, using social media tools.

His message to everyone involved in organizing the Games:

“Join in – get involved in the conversations and use the tools that are already out there – and try to do it in a way that is considered and credible, not clumsy. Not a small challenge for an institution as complex and traditional as the Games… Inspire more conversations -people are already using social media to talk about the Games in their own way and our role should be to introduce them to our values and vision, steer them, encourage them and inspire them – but never tell them what to do… Identify the positive voices, the supporters, turn them into advocates and ask them to help us and help us enlarge the conversation.”

You can read the full text of Balfour’s talk here. It includes some useful stats on the popularity of social media, and examples of people, like Barack Obama, who have successfully exploited it.