The International Olympic Committee has just made NBC and other rights holders (who give them lots and lots of money) very happy. Athletes are banned from podcasting from the Olympics according to Podcasting News. Their take on the IOC guidelines:

[A]udio podcasting, video podcasting, photoblogging and vlogging are banned for Olympic athletes, media representatives, officials and staff. Anyone violating the guidelines may be banned from the Olympics and sued for damages.

Too bad. Wouldn’t it have been cool to get an insider look at some of the track athletes’ prep? Swimmers’ parties after the final lap’s been swum? This all goes back to my original theory that the Olympics have gone downhill since Lake Placid 1980… but then again, I didn’t exactly get an Eric Heiden podcast or a US Hockey video podcast then either…