Friday night's NFL contest between the Eagles and Packers is a unique one. The two sides are playing at Corinthians Arena as the first of five games on the 2024 NFL international slate.
Not only will it be a different crowd for the season opener for Philadelphia and Green Bay, but it's a completely new stadium for the two clubs to play in. It's the first time ever the NFL is being played in Brazil, presenting a special environment.
The quirkiness of the game is not just limited to the players, coaches and other staff members. It applies to journalists as well.
Those reporters attending the game in person in Sao Paulo will have to adjust their game-day coverage of the event. That is due to Brazil's recent ban on X, formerly Twitter. The journalists at Corinthians Arena won't be able to use the social media platform to provide in-game updates like normal. If they do, they could be facing repercussions from the Brazilian government.
Here is more on why Twitter is banned in Brazil.
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Why is Twitter banned in Brazil?
Brazil elected to block the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, in August due to a months-long feud between Musk and Brazil's Supreme Court.
According to Time, X missed a deadline to name a legal representative in Brazil. The requirement was imposed by Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, and once the deadlined passed with no such representative named, it triggered the suspension of the platform in the country.
"Elon Musk showed his total disrespect for Brazilian sovereignty and, in particular, for the judiciary, setting himself up as a true supranational entity and immune to the laws of each country," de Moraes said in his decision.
The ban did not come out of nowhere. De Moraes previously warned Musk that the suspension would be put into place if his requirement of a legal representative in Brazil was not met. X has not had a representative in the country since early August.
"This is a sad day for X users around the world, especially those in Brazil, who are being denied access to our platform. I wish it did not have to come to this – it breaks my heart," X’s CEO Linda Yaccarino said.
In order to block X, Brazil’s telecommunications regulator, Anatel, ordered internet service providers to suspend users’ access to the social media platform. De Moraes said the platform will stay suspended until the company complies with his orders.
There is also a daily fine of 50,000 reais ($8,900) for people or companies using VPNs to access it, which applies to the journalists in Brazil covering the Eagles-Packers game in Sao Paulo.
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How are reporters covering the Eagles-Packers game in Brazil?
It's going to take a little bit of teamwork for NFL beat reporters in Brazil. Instead of tweeting live from Corinthians Arena, reporters covering the game in person will use a unique approach to give followers updates on the contest.
According to ESPN's Dianna Russini, the beat reporters covering the Eagles are going to be feeding updates from the game to their wives back in the United States, who then will post to their significant other's X platform. It's an incredibly creative workaround that should not create any issues with Brazil's current ban on the company.
The wives of the Philadelphia beat reporters tweeting for them back in Philly/NJ because their husbands aren't allowed to tweet in Brazil may be my favorite sidebar story of the week. I hope they let it rip tonight. #Eagles #Packers
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) September 6, 2024
It's unclear if the same strategy will be utilized by the Packers beat reporters.
