This document discusses how digital technologies have accelerated communication and enabled citizen media makers to participate in narrating large events like the Olympics in real time. It presents a case study of #citizenrelay, which used a distributed network of smartphone reporters across Scotland to provide grassroots coverage of the 2012 Olympic Torch Relay that circumvented traditional media controls. By lowering participation barriers and coordinating through blogs and social media, #citizenrelay empowered citizens to instantly share local perspectives and alternative interpretations of the event outside official narratives.