Still connected in operations? The milblog culture

With the development of new information and communication technologies, military organizations are confronted with a proliferation of new informal channels used by soldiers, such as military blogs (or 'milblogs'). These consist of small websites created by defence personnel around military topics. Because they have the potential to reach a large audience, milblogs have become influential and, sometimes, controversial, pushing military organizations to be more open but also to try to control them. This article first describes the new forms of communication in the military, both at the institutional and at the individual level. Next it discusses the use of milblogs among Belgian soldiers in the field and the wider role played by the internet in operations, both as an information tool and a way to break the routine of the mission. Finally it examines how these information flows, while offering more diverse perspectives, also compete with official bureaucratic channels and elements of military culture.