A Golden Opportunity: Mater Dei Grad Manages Social Media For Rio Olympics

Samantha Dewig, a 2009 graduate of Mater Dei High School, will serve as NBC’s Social Media Manager during the 2016 Summer Olympic, which open Aug. 5 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

After graduating from Mater Dei, Dewig attended Indiana University, earning a degree in Sports Communication in 2013.  She worked for IU and Georgia Tech before landing her current position as Interactive Media Manager for the Atlanta Hawks.  

Because it’s the off-season for basketball, when Dewig saw a posting for positions with NBC during the network’s Olympic coverage, she was able to apply while maintaining her job in Atlanta.  

Dewig said that her work as NBC’s Social Media Manager for the Olympics will contribute to an effort to amp up digital coverage of the games. The network has outsourced a lot of digital work, creating opportunities like that afforded to Dewig.  NBC is “pushing to be super digital this year,” she said.  “Their goal is to make this the biggest social media event in history.”

Dewig has been attending meetings in New York City to become acquainted with the rest of the media team and with NBC’s culture and personality – an essential part of her role since, as she says, “Every sport, every media company has a voice.”

During the games, Dewig will be at NBC’s offices in New York City. She will primarily work with advertisers to integrate advertising content into social media coverage in a sleek and seamless way.  In doing so, she will also interact with Olympic athletes over social media.  She will manage content on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat.

Since coverage begins at 7:30 each morning and will continue into late-night talk shows, Dewig’s days will be long; however, she happily trades an off-season of relaxation for one of such exciting opportunity.  In fact, Dewig said that the position is particularly opportune and fitting because it reminds her of why she chose a career in sports communication.  “When I first decided I wanted to work in sports, it was during the Beijing Olympics,” she said.  

While Dewig emphasizes that every job and environment has shaped and influenced her, she says that takes her Indiana roots and Midwestern friendliness with her wherever she goes.  They will serve her well.  

Keep updated on the Olympic games at @nbcolympics on social media, or at nbcolympics.com.