Super Bowl 2014 On Social Media: 7 Internet Highlights From The Big Game

Aside from everyone in the Pacific Northwest and the true football wonks who know how to enjoy a truly masterful defensive performance, the general consensus seemed to be that the Seattle Seahawks’ 43-8 blowout of the Denver Broncos was one of the least-entertaining Super Bowl’s in recent memory.

That gave people around the country plenty of time to play on their phones, and the social media universe was crazier than usual. People sent 24.9 million tweets this year, beating out the 24.1 million tweets sent out during last year’s Super Bowl.

For many, the Internet was more fun than the actual game, so here are some social media highlights from the night that you may have missed.

1. Free WiFi At CBS Headquarters!

CBS got the Internet rolling before kickoff even started when it accidentally showed off the username and password for its corporate WiFi network on national television. The moment wasn’t lost to the Internet, who quickly shared it around social networks. CBS has likely changed its information, so you’re probably better off getting online at Starbucks.

2. Go Home JCPenney, You’re Drunk

No one was really sure what was going on with JCPenney’s Twitter feed during the Super Bowl. The company later apologized and said it was “tweeting with mittens.”

3. Coca-Cola Ad Ignites Debate About Race

It’s starting to feel like a commercial inspiring a debate about race in America is inevitable during the Super Bowl these days. Cheerios’ follow-up to its commercial featuring a mixed-race family predictably drew remarks, but nothing like a Coca-Cola commercial featuring the song “America the Beautiful” sung in a different languages.

People complained that “an American song” shouldn’t be sung “in the terrorist’s language,” and the hashtag #SpeakAmerican was quickly trending. The hashtag was later hijacked by people pointing out the numerous things wrong with that statement, beginning with the facts that the U.S. doesn’t have an official language and “American” is not a language. Others tried to be optimistic and pointed out that the Coke commercial was the first Super Bowl ad to include a gay family.

4. Hillary Clinton Jabs Fox

Hillary felt like she could identify with the punishment doled out on Broncos players by the Seattle Seahawks’ top-ranked defense.

5. Seahawk Celebrations

6. Denver’s Defeat

This kid summed up the feelings of every Bronos fan in the nation. On the bright side, at least he’s not a Kansas City Chiefs fan.

7. Of Course, The Commercials

Social Media platforms are increasingly becoming more important for marketers than the actual Super Bowl ad, which cost $4 million for a 30-second spot this year. This graphic from Offerpop breaks down some of advertising’s biggest moments on the Internet during the Super Bowl.

You can check out the Twitter blog for an even more comprehensive list of social media highlights. Plus, Search Engine Land has some snapshots of how people were using search engines during the Super Bowl.

What were your favorite Internet moments during the Super Bowl? Let us know in the comments.