NB: Some of the clips linked to on this page contain graphic images of war. The attribution of all these clips is unclear. Captions and comments on video sharing sites like YouTube should not be relied upon.

The idea: If Vietnam was the first TV war, Iraq is the first YouTube war, with huge amounts of unedited video footage appearing on video-sharing sites from all sides. US soldiers can take their own cameras into combat and have internet access on their bases, so much of the material comes direct from the war zone.

The predictable outrage: There have already been media skirmishes over clips like Hadji Girl – a recording of US Marine Joshua Belile singing a very off-message song about insurgents in front of a cheering crowd at the al-Asad base in Iraq.

The real thing: What’s unique are the clips of domestic life for ordinary soldiers. These are often trophy reels – montages of still photos and video clips celebrating a tour of duty. Down Time is a video from one company of US Marines, featuring a lot of drinking and wrestling, to the tune of an industrial rock track with the lyrics: “Keep the camera alive. Tell the world what’s going on here.” There are many similar British clips, for example from 4 Para, and one apparently from the London Regiment - although as with anything online, attribution is very uncertain.

You'll also find tiny details, like this amazing little clip of a sniper being shot at. Supposedly, snipers hide behind old bulletproof windscreens from Hummers. Speaking of which, one widely-blogged clip purports to have been filmed from a Hummer driving down a main street in Baghdad.

Looking for some light relief? This wonderful snippet of Iraqi policemen dancing is rather more uplifiting.

The good, the bad… Trawling through YouTube and Google Video with simple searches like “Iraq” or “Iraq kids” pulls up masses of interesting footage. One clip will show Marines and locals playing soccer in the sunshine. Others show soldiers taunting Iraqi children, offering them water then driving off.

...and the ugly: The problem with this footage is that it rarely has any context. A clip of Sunni-Shia violence might be new, it might be years old, it might be guerrilla journalism, or it might have come from CNN. It might not even be from Iraq.

The future: Media companies are now getting involved. The Times Middle East correspondent, Stephen Farrell, uses a camcorder and laptop to file video reports from Baghdad – a more personal, intimate view than you’re likely to see on the news.

Send me your trends at microtrends@thetimes.co.uk