The other camp, of which General Caldwell and General Petraeus are members, views blogs as a tool that can be used to the military's advantage. In an age where the United States finds itself engaged in a variety of smaller wars and counterinsurgencies, conflicts that will be won or lost in the halls of Congress instead of on the battlefield, Caldwell views the intensely personal war-stories flooding the internet as critical to the war effort, helping to sustain the American public's stomach for a protracted fight. They're also critical in fighting our media saavy enemy, who use contacts in global news outlets to widely and rapidly communicate their message of jihad to the world.
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Army Poet, Simon, United States, Not only do we have the toughest and smartest Army..., 30 Jan 2008
Bullet Wisdom, Ken, United States, This is the blog of an Active Duty Field Artillery..., 29 Jan 2008
TheAngryAmerican, GRUNTSHIT, Iraq, Just an Infantry Squad leader trying to get throug..., 29 Jan 2008
Navy Gal, Navy Gal, United States, I'm just an ordinary Navy girl going through life ..., 27 Jan 2008
Save the Royal Navy, NavyLookout, United Kingdom, Save the Royal Navy is a UK-based blog and website..., 25 Jan 2008
Getting Out!, Ralphy, United States, Journal that follows my process of leaving active ..., 24 Jan 2008
Active Duty Patriot, Army Sergeant, United States, An active duty Army Sergeant and member of Iraq Ve..., 23 Jan 2008
From The Front - Christian Lowe, Christian Lowe, United States, Welcome to the "From the Front" blog at Military.c..., 23 Jan 2008
One Life to Give, Susanne Harlandt, Germany, Perspectives from someone in the Services to the A..., 21 Jan 2008
Babylon and Beyond, Tony Perry, Iraq, Observations from Iraq, Iran, Israel, the Arab Wor..., 21 Jan 2008
Murphy was a Grunt, Murphy, United States, Former Marine. Currently a long haired (relative t..., 19 Jan 2008
Back in the Army Now (at 54), SPC Neil Gussman, United States, In August 2007 I re-enlisted in the Army National ..., 17 Jan 2008
Cabin Fever, KJ, United States, Adventures in waiting. An Army girlfriend's journe..., 16 Jan 2008
Knee Deep in the Hooah!, Claire S., United States, We've moved! Come and visit us at our new blog sit..., 16 Jan 2008
Joining the Army Airborne Rangers, NicksDad, United States, Father of someone considering joining the Airborne..., 15 Jan 2008
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After going through the rigmarole of medical jabs, writing a will, and telling his family that he's about to go to one of the most dangerous places on the planet, Lars decides to entitle his first post: 'Why do I do it?' Indeed.
Read more here.
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Lt. Gen. William B. Caldwell IV became an internationally-recognized figure in 2006 and 2007 as the face of the American effort in Iraq. He commanded the 82nd Airborne Division before, and now heads the Combined Arms Center and Fort Leavenworth -- one of the Army's main intellectual centers. (Gen. David Petraeus held the job before taking over the Iraq war.)
In a Small Wars Journal blog post, Caldwell says that, in a struggle where perception is often as important as bombs-and-bullets conflict, soldiers ought to be encouraged and equipped to wage that information war on their own. And that means "get[ting] onto blogs and [s]end[ing] their YouTube videos to their friends and family."
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Today's my beautiful wife's birthday (pictured above) who's back in the States and I wanted her to know that I'm thinking of her every minute. This is one of my favorite photos of us together (that's me on the left, not Brad Pitt). I know, I'm going to say I'm the luckiest man in the world. It's like I'm living something out of a dream. Nothing particularly out of the ordinary though --- I mean, I'm convinced I married Penelope Cruz. And I'm still pretty sure my wife gave birth to a Care Bear (see here).
Yep, you're all blown away by my sense of romance... Well, if you ever met me in person, that's one of the the first things you'd notice about me. That, and my biceps.
Happy Birthday Sweetheart!
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I'm pretty sure at this point I could send them photos of me in the Green Zone standing under the Cross Sabers holding my M-4 and wearing my nametape, and they’d look at it and say, “Dude? I hope he brings the beer this weekend”.
Only they'd say it with a surfer’s accent.
(Hello Iraq) A much read and well loved blogger is back in the sandbox. His initial report back is a “feeling of positive changes in the air!” Go check out Doc in the Box. Give him your support and well wishes. While you at it, don’t forget to visit JP at MILBlogging.com who is now back in Afghanistan. The link here goes to his latest post where he let’s us know one of his favorite “buddies” has just joined him. Lol, you have really got to read this post!
JP, Sean, we love you guys! Take care and keep your six down!!
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While many milbloggers and their supporters did not necessarily start out as "war-bloggers", the need to support fellow soldiers, family, friends and like minded citizens became an imperative. What started out as individuals seeking their own voices became a real effort to support the troops, support the war effort and support the country. Milbloggers stand on the shoulders of such men as Francis Lieber and the Loyal Publication Society who showed the power of citizen volunteers in information warfare and maintaining national morale in a long war.
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I do take a historical view about the “military blog” (any weblog by military personnel, on duty or retired) or the “warblogs” (weblogs specifically by soldiers, sailors, air force personnel, and Marines deployed in war zones).
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While checking out the Bloggies, I did notice there isn’t a category for Military Blogs. There is however one for Food, and Topical, even a Group category, but no military. It’s good to see there’s even a category for Best-Kept secret weblog, but still no Best Military weblog. If you ask me, to really make the Bloggies 2008 a legitimate Blog Awards site, they really should have a category for Best Blog written by a Unicorn. Or Best Microwave Blog. And then to generate some serious buzz, they could even have a Best Foot Blog...
I really think I have something here.
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They had to because traditional media was getting it wrong more often than not. They had to because partisan bickering had nothing to do with the well-being of those in harm’s way (or mission success). They had to because the American public was by-in-large detached from the small segment of the population that was doing their bidding in hostile lands.
And milbloggers were successful. Through their dogged, almost obdurate, presentation of first-person narratives they first got the attention of their own — which was no small feat in itself. Then they got the attention of the American public. Then they got the attention of traditional media, whose members treated milblogging as a curiosity or a lark until bloggers like Micheal Yon, Matt Burden, and Bill Roggio showed them they didn’t have a monopoly on capturing the stories of war. And once they got the attention of traditional media they got the attention of the Department of Defense and the Bush administration.
Read the entire story here.
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Said Schippert, "Milbloggers banded together over that. The gauntlet was laid down, and we told Jordan to put up or shut up. We asked him to release the tape from this conference and own up to what he said. That got milbloggers a lot of attention, and Jordan left CNN not long afterward."
So what exactly is a milblog? The panelists consider this field to include blogs by active-duty soldiers, as well as their families and friends, and former soldiers -- as long as the cover current military issues.
In contrast to the highly competitive mindset of many mainstream journalists, the panelists indicated that milbloggers operate in a very collaborative fashion, with considerable backchannel communication. Uncle Jimbo explained, "We check each other's facts and information, both before we post and after. That's a big part of our credibility. Because we're all kind of riding in the back of the same truck. We keep each other honest."
Read the entire story here about the BlogWorld expo.
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(Ask Meta Filter) Are there deployed soldiers blogging about the US elections?
I'm interested in seeing what currently deployed soldiers in Iraq or Afghanistan have to say on blogs about the United States elections. While I'm specifically interested in reading about the current state primaries and the upcoming national election, I'd also like to read about previous elections as well, if possible. Are there any military blogs that mention the elections in a post or two? I did a cursory exploration of some popular milblogs and didn't come up with anything.
I'd also like to see if anyone talks about the experience of voting absentee when deployed.
I'm not looking for specific endorsements of candidates -- I know that's probably not out there -- just general thoughts on the electoral process in the United States.
Read the entire story here.
Thanks to Kathi for the interesting tip.
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In the next few weeks, I will be launching the Milbloggies nomination phase for 2007. I’m still working out some updates to make sure this year’s Nomination/Voting goes smoothly. Normally every year I receive dozens of complaints telling me how difficult it is to press a button so I’m trying to make it easier to nominate and vote. However, it never seems to be enough.
I could spend the next 10 years of my life making it so the website could just read your mind when you signed in, but I’d probably still get hate mail.
Plus, if I did add that mind-reading feature, and "I" myself tried signing in, I’m pretty sure the server would start erupting lava, then all of a sudden explode due to overload of genius.
Just thought you'd like to know...
Anyway, checkout the list of the Canadian Blog Award finalists in the Military Blog category:
Best Military Blog
What The F*&#!?!?
Military Mom at Home
The Cannon’s Mouth
The Torch
From a Canadian Cadet to an American Soldier
Keep updated on the finalists and winners here.
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(The New York Times) Michael Yon was not a journalist, and he wasn’t sure what a blogger was. He had been in uniform but not in combat, and he wanted to keep it that way. He went to Iraq thinking he would stay for a month, and maybe find a way to write about the war after he got home.
Instead, he has spent most of the last three years in Iraq, writing prolifically and graphically, and racking up more time embedded with combat units than any other journalist, according to the United States military. He has been shot at, buffeted by explosions and seen more people maimed — fighters and civilians, adults and children — than he can count.
“The easiest thing in the world to write about is combat, because all the drama is there,” said Mr. Yon, a fit, ruddy-faced 43-year-old who was a Special Forces soldier more than two decades ago. He insists that he still does not really know the rules of journalism, but says he has recently, grudgingly, accepted that he has become a journalist.
Mr. Yon, however, does not work for any organization; no news outlet pays him for the hundreds of dispatches and photos he has produced. He publishes his work on his own Web site, michaelyon-online.com (some will appear again in a book set for release in April), and he also posts submissions from military people serving in Iraq. He says contributions from his readers have paid most of his costs, though he declines to say how much they have given.
Read the entire story here.
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This week I’d like to introduce you to Tony Perry, a reporter with the L.A. Times, who is also blogging from Iraq. I know when a lot of people think of military bloggers they think of troops, but it’s always important to remember there are all types of military bloggers – spouses, parents, veterans, and many more. This is Tony’s sixth trip to Iraq with the Marines from Camp Pendleton. And from talking to him by email, it’s obvious, he’s a blogger at heart.
I asked Tony about his thoughts on blogging and here’s what he had to say which I thought captured one of the many benefits of milblogging:
“Blogging is a great opportunity to provide a look "at conditions on the ground" that can sometimes be overlooked in larger-scale stories. A good blogging item is like gold, it's where you find it. When you least expect it, something interesting pops up, like the troops' devotion to Chuck Norris or the unofficial rules for gunfighting that I saw posted on a wall. I can't imagine how we covered the troops without blogging as one of our approaches.”
Someday I might give reporting a shot, to see how the other half lives (so to speak). Yeah, that’s right. Reporting. Sure, I might not have any formal training in the field and I’m not even vaguely familiar with what it takes to become a reporter. I can’t write. I freeze on camera. I even have a lazy eye. But I am strong. I could just hold a microphone with one arm, and flex my biceps on camera with the other. And at the end of each segment, I could wink to my adoring audience. Maybe even blow them a kiss. It’s a pretty novel idea I have to say. You just don’t see reporters connecting with their audience like this. I’m pretty sure, I’d be one of the greats.
People would write books about me.
Name: Tony Perry
Website URL: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/babylonbeyond/marines_in_iraq/index.html
Milblogging Listing: Babylon and Beyond
Email: Tony.Perry@latimes.com
Blogging from: Iraq
Branch: U.S. Reporter
From one of Tony’s recent entries:
One of the tribal sheiks in Anbar province whom Marines are depending on to fight the insurgency is Hatim Gaoud of the Albu Nimr tribe.
Although younger than many sheiks, he has assumed a place of prominence. At a gathering with Marine brass, other sheiks let him sit next to the top Marine, Maj. Gen. Walter Gaskin. The sheik is not reluctant to speak his mind.
On the impact of the insurgency: "There is not one house in Anbar that has not had a tragedy."
On the Baghdad government, particularly the Ministry of the Interior, which controls the police: "The problem is that they are not with us."
On a promise to screen police applicants to eliminate insurgents: "We will not send you anybody with the stain of life on his hands."
Gaskin promised help. "You must understand we are all in this together," he told Hatim and the others.
--Tony Perry at Camp Fallouja, Iraq
Read more at Babylon and Beyond.
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For those of you who remember my first deployment to Afghanistan, this image might bring back some memories. This time, a Blue Boohbah has arrived complements of my sister. While blogging from Afghanistan, Ragdoll the company that invented this doll even contacted me. I hate to dismiss items sent to me in Care Packages, really, I do. I’d try and pretend to like this item (the same way I pretend to enjoy Beef Jerky or a kick to the groin), but this is Boohbah we’re talking about people. Seriously, my sister should just be glad we’re still talking after this stunt. But since it is from my sister, I figured I’d start taking Blue Boohbah out on mission with me in Iraq. It’s amazing what a morale booster this doll is. Really.
It’s like I’ve forgotten I’m deployed.
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In the first instance, understanding morale, combat cohesion, and the battlefield experience of Afghanistan and Iraq should be much easier than previous wars. No need to go searching through the archives or getting hold of family letters that have been locked away in an attic for 50 odd years. Instead, you can log on to the Internet and track down some blogs. You'll also have access to photos and video.
Read the entire story here.
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The Daily Record is actively seeking military personnel to join our growing community of bloggers. If you are active duty military deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan and are interested in blogging about your military experiences on our website, then please fill out the following form…Read the entire story here.
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