NFL to allow Twitter during Pro Bowl

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KAPOLEI, Hawaii -- Hawaii makes everyone a little more laid back, including the NFL.

The NFL is relaxing its social media policy and allowing players to tweet before and during Sunday's Pro Bowl.

The league on Wednesday said it will set up a computer on each sideline where players are encouraged to use Twitter to communicate with fans, teammates and even opponents during commercial breaks and when their offensive or defensive unit is not on the field.

Tweeting is voluntary and only one player per team may tweet at a time.

Mobile devices will not be allowed during the game. The players can, however, tweet from their phones before the game and at halftime. Facebook and other popular social media platforms are not included.

"This is an innovative way to further engage our fans who have an insatiable appetite for football," NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said. "NFL players have been very active on social media and enjoying talking to fans. The nature of the Pro Bowl enables us to have players tweet during the game."

The existing policy bans players from tweeting 90 minutes before games all the way until they fulfill their postgame media obligations.

The Pro Bowl experiment is not being considered for the regular season or playoffs, the NFL said.

The players will be tweeting with the hashtag #ProBowl.

Some major leaguers communicated with fans via Twitter during baseball's Home Run Derby last year.

Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press

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