From the "Well, duh" dept.

Anonymous Pentagon guys are concerned about the strategic use of the media as psy-ops tools and its deleterious effect on the military's "credibility".

Although most of the work remains classified, officials say that some of the ongoing efforts include having U.S. military spokesmen play a greater role in psychological operations in Iraq, as well as planting information with sources used by Arabic TV channels such as Al Jazeera to help influence the portrayal of the United States.

Other specific examples were not known, although U.S. national security officials said an emphasis had been placed on influencing how foreign media depict the United States.

These efforts have set off a fight inside the Pentagon over the proper use of information in wartime. Several top officials see a danger of blurring what are supposed to be well-defined lines between the stated mission of military public affairs — disseminating truthful, accurate information to the media and the American public — and psychological and information operations, the use of often-misleading information and propaganda to influence the outcome of a campaign or battle.

As a member of said American public, allow me to officially lend my whole-hearted endorsement to the efforts of the military to spread disinformation about their actual plans via the fifth column--er, fourth estate. Terrorists watch CNN too, you know. Better I know too little before the fact than that they know too much.

Several of those officials who oppose the use of misleading information spoke out against the practice on the condition of anonymity.

Well, of course they did. Brave, brave dissenters.

(Linked by Jonah Goldberg in the Corner.)