WAR 2.0 Watch Israel Bomb Gaza On YouTube By Richard, 1:45 PM on Tue Dec 30 2008, 1,324 views
Forget Bromance and The City. The truly horrifying reality TV is being broadcast on global video yearbook YouTube. By the Israeli army. Yes, they have a YouTube channel!
It's brand new as of yesterday. What they're (they = the Israeli Defense Forces' Spokesperson's Unit) using it for is to, well, show instances of successful bombings in Gaza. Because, you know, they're doing that whole fighting with Hamas thing again. Apparently YouTube administrators took down one particularly graphic video, but the IDF remains committed to showing horrible bombings to drum up some positive PR. The channel's profile reads:
The IDF Spokesperson's Unit is the Israel Defense Forces' professional body responsible for media and public relations in Israel and around the world. This is our new site that will help us bring our message to the world.
We are saddened that YouTube has taken down some of our exclusive footage showing the IDF's operational success in operation Cast Lead against Hamas extremists in the Gaza Strip. As the State of Israel again faces those who would see it destroyed, it is imperative that we in the IDF show the world the inhumanity directed against us and our efforts to stop it. It is also worth noting that one of the videos removed had the highest number of hits (over 10,000) at the time of its removal.
As if, I dunno, the message wasn't yet clear enough or loud enough or bomby enough, now it's got to be distorted and distilled through the fanciful and dirty medium of baby laughs and cat farts and swoony video tributes to Nick Jonas. It's all a little flip, this treatment of strife and warfare and existences blown sky high.
And did I mention the user comments? Whooo boy.