Archives » Wednesday, April 09, 2008
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David Botti
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Apr 9, 2008 10:09 AM
Since the start of the Iraq war, the importance and viability of
military blogs has stirred up tremendous debate. There have been
issues of military censorship, journalistic viability, and ethical
dilemmas. Recently, talk of where (and how) military blogs fit into
the war's narrative has seemed to intensify to some degree. Here's a
look at what's happening:
The Columbia Journalism Review published a lengthy article in its last issue profiling Bill Roggio, a U.S.-based military blogger who's set up his own media operation
aimed at reporting on terrorism and "small wars" beyond what the
mainstream media can do. Before the piece gets to Roggio, the intro
takes a look at the gap military blogs aim to fill:
When the United States invaded Iraq in 2003, among the
seven-hundred-odd journalists who embedded with combat units were few
who were familiar with the military in any intimate way. To many
critics, especially those with military experience, this revealed
itself in the press’s coverage of the war, which they felt often missed
the mark when it came to explaining the hows and the whys of the fight,
as well as the mundane realities of military life and culture.
Army veteran Roggio first started blogging about the wars in Iraq and
Afghanistan to put the events in perspective for his family. But, as
CJR notes, a transformation took place that's changed the way Roggio
operates—and underscores the significance these blogs can have:
It was during the second battle for Fallujah in November 2004,
however, that he began to focus his effort. He had been posting
detailed battle maps of Iraq’s Anbar province on his site, showing
where Marine and Army units were meeting the stiffest resistance from
insurgent groups who harassed them with roadside bombs and the
occasional ambush. In the spring of 2005, a new group of readers began logging on to
Roggio’s site. The Marines in Anbar province were embroiled in a deadly
game of cat-and-mouse, and looking for any tactical advantage they
could find. Officers with the Regimental Combat Team 2 discovered
Roggio’s site and began using it as an information source, calling his
site the “Command Chronology of Western Iraq.”
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