The Military Embraces YouTube
"Multi-National Force - Iraq established this YouTube channel to give viewers around the world a 'boots on the ground' perspective of Operation Iraqi Freedom from those who are fighting it," according to the site. The channel offers clips of military combat – 12 so far – shot by Armed Forces network videographers, among them "Battle on Haifa Street" and "Night Attack on Al Qaeda."
"On The Media," which alerted us to the channel, has posted an interview with Major Armando Hernandez, the media outreach embed chief with the multinational forces in Iraq. An interesting exchange comes towards the end: Hernandez says "the military is illustrating an unfiltered view of coalition operations here in Iraq," which prompts interviewer Bob Garfield to respond with this: "Well, not an unfiltered image. I mean, it's an explicitly filtered image, but it's certainly the Pentagon's side of the story in view of the war."
I think it's safe to say that the Pentagon doesn't always like the press corps' presentation of the war. The YouTube channel is an effective way to tell war stories without depending on the media, and the Pentagon is smart to use the Internet to showcase the "heroism of our American troops."
The problem is that the freedom the Internet provide cuts both ways: Just as it gives the Pentagon a chance to present the war one way, it gives soldiers and regular citizens a chance to present their own views. And they aren't always rosy.
Garfield addessed the issue with Hernandez.
"As you have seen some of the other videos from the ground in Iraq," he asked, "have you cringed at the message that some of your own troops are sending in what they choose to upload to YouTube?"
Responded Hernandez: "Definitely. If the videos show extreme gore or if they mock our Iraqi hosts, I would be disgusted. Our aim is to be far above, beyond that."