Ochocinco News Network To Cover Super Bowl

NFL News - February 2nd, 2010 - Written by John Ritter

Cincinnati wide receiver Chad Ochocinco will be making his first Super Bowl appearance this week.....as a reporter.

Ochocinco, along with several other notable NFL names, will assume a media role this week leading up to Super Bowl XLIV. They will ask questions, inquires, and gain insight from both Indianapolis and New Orleans as the two teams prepare to play.

The interviews will be broadcast by way of the "Ochocinco News Network" from Motorola.

"It'll be something new, something never done before," the Bengals receiver said told The Associated Press through a phone interview.

Ochocinco will be assisted throughout the week by Washington tight-end Chris Cooley, Baltimore running back Ray Rice, and Arizona defensive tackle Darnell Docket.

The players obtained media credentials, and will attend and participate in all functions as the week progresses. They will continually update a website and twitter feeds. All of the players have large followings already on their twitter accounts, adding up into the hundred's of thousands.

The goal is to achieve a unique player perspective as he prepares for the Super Bowl.

"That's what everybody wants to hear," Ochocinco remarked in an interview. "They want to hear the players' perspective. They don't want to hear what the other [media] outlets say about what they feel is going on. People want to hear what the players feel about the events, the whole nine yards."

Ochocinco began his news network project in October, but for the first couple of months did not regularly update the site. The Bengals were in a playoff race throughout the course of the season and ended up capturing the AFC North Division title. However, the the team lost in the wild-card round of the playoffs to the New York Jets.

"At that time as the season neared the end, I had to slow down a little bit on most of the social media stuff," Ochocinco said. "Coach [Marvin] Lewis never said anything directly to me, but you understood that it wasn't the right time to be doing as much as I used to. So this is the perfect time to do what I'm doing right now, and I'm the perfect fit for it."

Motorola agreed with Ochocinco about it being the perfect time, as the company put together this four-man NFL roster for the week. Motorola has been promoting their MOTOBLUR feature.

"When OCNN first launched, the goal was to give fans unprecedented access into Chad's life and the game he loves," said Bill Ogle, marketing officer with Motorolla. "Expanding OCNN with more correspondents for the Super Bowl just made sense."

Ochocinco will receive plenty of attention this week in addition to his news network, as the wide receiver is hosting a large party that will raise money for the people of Haiti. Over 400 guests are expected.