NBC Sent 27 Creators to Paris. It Only Needed Snoop and Olympic Athletes

In mid-June, erstwhile NBCUniversal announced it was partnering with Meta, Overtime, Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube to send 27 influencers to the 2024 Paris Olympics, it seemed similar a large deal. These were immense contented creators similar Kai Cenat, Daniel Macdonald, and Zhongni “Zhong” Zhu, radical with millions upon millions of followers. The anticipation was that their beingness would prosecute Gens Z and Alpha and get them funny successful the Games.

Mostly, that didn’t cookware out. Though the determination generated fawning “age of the influencer” pieces from outlets similar The New York Times and Bloomberg, neither consumers nor advertisers (who NBCUniversal said could make sponsored posts with the influencers, should they desire) look to person responded each that good to the network’s “Paris Creators Collective,” which spent the past 2 weeks bopping astir betwixt Olympic events.

Instead, what caught the public’s attraction was contented from jock creators similar USA rugby squad prima Ilona Maher, who gained astir 2 cardinal caller followers successful the past mates of weeks acknowledgment to her witty acceptable checks and Love Island-like references to the “Olympic Villa.” Norwegian swimmer Henrik Christansen became celebrated for his love of a gooey cocoa muffin served successful the Olympic Village, portion different fans consumed seemingly dozens of national kit unboxing videos made by athletes from each astir the globe.

People person besides fallen for hep figures, similar Olympic shooters Kim Yeji and Yusuf Dikeç oregon Stephen Nedoroscik, the bespectacled American gymnast who truly should enactment connected getting a Warby Parker endorsement woody if helium hasn’t landed 1 already. People person besides gone nuts (again) for the reportedly highly valuable Olympics commentary of Snoop Dogg, who NBCUniversal officially brought connected board for the archetypal clip for these Games.

The videos NBC’s influencers are posting, connected the different hand, don’t look to beryllium hitting—or going viral, astatine least. Part of that could beryllium owed to the limitations handed to the creators, who weren’t allowed to station videos of the existent events.

Most tried to enactment astir the existent athletics, sharing clips from the venues, of their reactions, their meals, and their cartwheels, oregon of their outfits. Others tried to play coy astir the full conceit, utilizing their TikToks to poke amusive astatine European architecture or, successful the lawsuit of “Apprentice of Jesus” creator Lecrae, addressing the “sincerity of his faith” for profiting disconnected the aforesaid Games that radical (incorrectly) judge poked amusive astatine the Last Supper.

The resulting videos consciousness a small thin, with commentary that’s little biting oregon contiguous than what’s been making the rounds elsewhere. (After all, if NBCUniversal flies you to Paris and puts you up, you’re astir apt not going to poke amusive astatine however goofy the Australian breakdancer’s moves were oregon however you couldn’t spot squat from your costly spot astatine the Opening Ceremony.)