by rick grant rickgrant01@comcast.net
Finally we've reached a point in the advancement of video technology that U.S. Soldiers can carry small digital video cameras no bigger than a pack of cigarettes. These devices enable them to shoot high quality videos of their daily missions, return to the base and immediately send this unedited, uncensored footage back home to their loved ones on their personal blogs. They can also send their footage to the History Channel's dedicated website called Band of Bloggers. The video blogs include text, which is surprisingly well written and emotionally charged. The only rules are - they cannot give away their location or their unit's name, otherwise the footage is raw, as-it-happens with the gritty profanity-laced chatter of the men engaged in life-or-death combat with a fanatical enemy that is willing to die.
Indeed, even CNN and other news channels cannot compete with this near real time action available anytime to anyone who wants to experience a single soldier's daily struggle to fight and stay alive, and ultimately get back home to his or her loved ones. Advancements in the Internet has created a whole new form of journalism in the hands of the soldiers, who don't get to go home after shooting a segment like media journalists.
This new soldier-generated content (SGC) journalism is revolutionary and shockingly in-your-face. It effectively conveys the fog of war with the noise of the weapons firing, the dense smoke and the return fire coming to the soldiers' positions. It makes a powerful statement about our troops' commitment to finishing their mission and helping their buddies and themselves stay alive. Viewers see the men firing their weapons, often while spotting targets from various positions. U.S. troops are armed to the teeth with their advanced M16s, equipped with grenade launchers, the pervasive and deadly SAW (Squad Automatic Weapon) and an assortment of hand-held missile launchers. In one video, an American Army sniper is aiming a Barrett .50 caliber bold-action rifle at a target, taking it out with deadly accuracy.
The History Channel's Band of Bloggers website (history.com) has many new videos shot every day with captions explaining the action. A typical clip was shot by Staff Sgt. John Hoffman who is with the soldiers of Bronco Troop, 3rd Striker Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division out of Fort Lewis, WA. He shot this footage when they were sent to help an Iraqi police station that had come under fire in the Diyala Province. The action involves the men running across the street while the other men give them suppressing fire, then clearing the buildings and going to the rooftops to spot the insurgents.
Clearly, this type of crowded urban warfare is the most dangerous and dreaded by all troops. The enemy could be anywhere, around any corner, and there could be snipers waiting on rooftops to ambush American soldiers from hidden positions. Deadly explosive booby traps could be planted in doorways, in alleys, or inside buildings. The men can't tell if the wires running into the buildings are trip wires or utility feeders. Every mission on the streets is nerve-racking and could be the soldier shooting the video's last day on earth.
Accompanying the videos are the poignant text blogs that give first-hand accounts of the day's activities. A few of these soldier journalists have shown extraordinary writing talent. One Marine, who came back from a disastrous mission, wrote a blog so intensely brilliant, he was offered a book deal.
Here is an example of these daily text blogs.
"Once again, there I was, on the ground with that blasphemous radio strapped onto my back-antenna sticking straight up, like it was screaming, "shoot me!" I was filling-in for someone else. It should only be temporary, right? A few months ago, this exact job got a friend of mine killed. Alright, move quick through open areas, when we stop, take a knee, stay sharp. There's supposed to be a sniper cell in the area."
Anyone who wants to know what is really going on in the Iraq War, this is the real skinny-not some pretty boy anchor reading the news with edited, censored footage. Go to History.com and type in Band of Bloggers on the Search space. One can tune into the war as it happens daily. Soon, soldiers will be able to Pod-Cast their videos directly to the States during the battle when they have a moment to rest. War will never be the same.
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