Pentagon surrenders to YouTube

The US military is surrendering to YouTube. Less than three years after its launch, the Pentagon is shutting down TroopTube, a video-sharing site set up for US soldiers and their families.

A statement posted on the home page of TroopTube said it would close on 31 July.

TroopTube was launched in November 2008 at a time when many members of the US armed forces were restricted from using YouTube.

Its stated mission was to be “an online video site designed to help military families connect and keep in touch while miles apart”.

The site never really caught on, however, and restrictions on the use of YouTube were lifted by the Defence Department in February 2010.

“Since then, TroopTube’s usage has declined as military members and their families adopted other methods of sharing videos”, the TroopTube statement said.

The statement posted on TroopTube urged service members to “please continue to share your videos through video hosting service websites such as YouTube”.

It warned them, however, to be “especially mindful of operational security when sharing information about deployments, troop movements, and detailed personal information”. — AFP