NBCUniversal’s Olympic creator push highlights the changing rules of sports media

Broadcasters are increasingly leaning on content creators to help cover major sporting events in a bid to reach younger audiences and expand how live sport is experienced online. The shift signals a deeper structural change in how sports media is distributed, but not everyone agrees on what that means, or whether broadcasters should rely so heavily on creators to carry the narrative.

This month, NBCUniversal announced it would reinstate and expand its Creator Collective initiative for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympic Winter Games, partnering with YouTube, Meta and TikTok. The programme will embed creators on the ground at the Games, offering behind-the-scenes access to athletes and competitions, with direct support from each platform to help them produce and distribute coverage in real time.

It is a re-up of the initiative rolled out around the Paris 2024 Olympics, where NBC used a pilot cohort to complement its traditional broadcast output through TikTok, YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels. That approach, it said, “exploded” on social media and helped it rack up an “unprecedented” 6.55 billion impressions across NBC Sports social channels and more than 300 million views across social platforms.

The move reflects a wider shift across the industry as broadcasters increasingly recognise the role creators play in bringing sporting moments to the masses. But the blurring of boundaries between creators and sports journalists has opened a debate about standards and whether the access being granted is now for the few, rather than the many.

Gabrielle Pippins, a sports content coordinator in the US, said the rise of creator-led coverage comes with both opportunities and drawbacks.

“[It’s] positive because not everyone can afford to get an education at a college or university with a focus in sports journalism, but negative because not everyone who currently qualifies should qualify based on lacking some of the necessary areas of study or expertise,” she told The Daily Influence.

“This shift means it will become more difficult to differentiate between qualified and non-qualified sports journalists, and it will make it difficult to determine the authenticity of one’s analysis,” she added.

Pippins, who is also a student journalist at the University of North Texas, said it may also become harder for traditional, on-air sports journalists to build careers as social media becomes increasingly saturated with creator commentary – often prioritising quick takes and popular debates over deeper reporting.

But not all are concerned. Adam Ingoe, a journalism student at Newcastle University and reporter at The Non-League Paper, stressed that creators and journalists serve different functions.

“Creators… are expanding the reach of major events by speaking directly to younger audiences who rarely engage with linear broadcast. When managed properly, creators enhance storytelling without compromising the competitive integrity of sport,” he said.

The debate was pushed into public consciousness at this year’s New York City Marathon, after organisers faced backlash for allowing a group of influencers to start ahead of elite runners – a decision many said compromised the competitive dynamic of the event. The reaction illustrated how sensitive audiences are to perceived overreach by creators in sporting environments.

Still, many inside the creator economy argue the integration is both appropriate and overdue. Kierra Maggs, the founder of creator consulting agency Limitless Social, told The Daily Influence that creators are simultaneously complementing and displacing traditional sports media, and that broadcasters must adapt at speed.

“They’ll need to update how media credentials work, rethink licensing and rights for digital-first coverage and partner with creators instead of treating them as outsiders,” she said.

“Actually recognise that creators are now key distribution channels in their own right, not just ‘content makers’,” she added.