To which superpimp8000 responded, "Look into the eyes of the Iraqi soldiers at the end. That is a man experiencing success at defending his country. We should finish this thing the right way and not leave people like that man hanging. Literally."
If the comments are too rude or extreme, the military will take them off the site. But it is pleased that the footage is generating debate.
"That conversation is important," Barnes said. "That's why we use this media."
This is not the first time the military has delved into the world of online video sharing. The U.S. Navy launched a YouTube channel in November, and the Army followed in February. But they served mostly as recruiting tools, and have drawn a fraction of the viewers of the Multi-National Force-Iraq channel, with its raw footage from the battlefront.
So far, the videos posted on the MNF-I channel have been shot by the military's professional combat cameramen, as well as public affairs and Armed Forces Network teams. However, contributions have been solicited from the troops in the field.
Back in the U.S., many are posting their own video montages -- sometimes to the chagrin of the military command.
Last year, a video of a Marine singing his song, "Hadji Girl," sparked outrage. The word Hadji refers to a Muslim who has made a religious pilgrimage to Mecca, but it is often used by U.S. troops as a pejorative term for Iraqis.
The song was about a U.S. soldier who falls in love with an Iraqi woman and is ambushed by her family when he is taken to meet them. The Marine, Cpl. Joshua Belile, was required to apologize.
"About every other month, we will get a call about some video on YouTube that shows questionable behavior by the troops," Garver said. His section investigates each call.
"It has been frustrating," he said. "There are 150,000 troops out here doing great work every day, but what you see is the one knucklehead who shot the three-legged dog and put it up on YouTube.... Well, here is our chance to show there are troops doing the right thing."
zavis@latimes.com
On the Web: http://www.youtube. com/profile?user=MNFIRAQ
