At the end of February, the Pentagon relaxed its policy on social networking websites. US troops will now be allowed to tweet, blog and use Facebook. Previously, the sites had been banned from the US military's non-classified computer network, as the Pentagon was concerned that bandwidth would be used up, or that military secrets might be exposed by careless entries.
This might sound unlikely, but it's easy to forget just how much military information is sensitive. Just three days after the Pentagon's announcement, the Jerusalem Post reported that hundreds of photographs of classified information were available on the Facebook pages of former and serving Israel Defence Forces soldiers. They included pictures of the interiors and exteriors of army bases, electronic equipment and weapons systems.
The Pentagon certainly hasn't rushed its decision. It took seven months (yes, seven months) for senior officials to complete a review concluding that the benefits of social media outweighed the risks.
So what are the benefits? For soldiers serving abroad, social networking is an effective way to keep in touch with friends and family. But the army has other ideas, too. Officials say they recognise that social media are a crucial way to reach a younger generation, both within and outside the army.
Viral marketing and the US army may not be the most obvious pairing, but the Pentagon has started as it means to go on. The policy change was announced on the Twitter feed of Price Floyd, principal deputy assistant secretary of defence for public affairs. How very Web 2.0.
