#RioProblems

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Part of a series on 2016 Summer Olympics. [View Related Entries]

About

#RioProblems is a hashtag used on Twitter to discuss various problems surrounding the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio.

Origin

Before the Olympics began, there was widespread concern about Rio's preparedness to host the event, particularly about the cleanliness of Rio's water, the spread of the Zika Virus, public safety, and more. While it is difficult to pinpoint where the hashtag began, the earliest known example of "Rio Problems" is the launch of the "@RioProblems" Twitter account on February 5th, 2014.^[1]

Spread

The hashtag grew in prominence as the Olympics approached and more bad news came out of Rio. Soon journalists and other Twitter users voiced their concern and disbelief at the state of Rio. They used the hashtag to tweet about Rio's unfinished facilities,^[2] lack of food,^[3] sewage-filled beaches, zoo animals on the golf course, organizing incompetency, and much more.^[4]

As the games began, more problems began to emerge, including the Olympic diving pool turning green and giving off a "fart" smell,^[7] an alarming number of empty seats in Olympic stadiums,^[8] body parts washing up on the beaches,^[9] and more.

News Media Coverage

The BBC^[5] reported that the hashtag peaked on Monday, August 8th, 2016, when videos of muggings^[6] in broad daylight taking place in Rio were shared around Twitter. Other outlets covering the trend include CBC,^[10] Yahoo,^[11] The New York Daily News,^[12] The Sun,^[4] and The International Business Times.^[13]