YouTube, MySpace and 11 Other Sites Off Limits to Soldiers

Effective today, the Military is banning YouTube, MySpace and other sites on all its networks and computers according to a memo by Gen. B.B. Bell, the U.S. Forces Korea commander. The policy is being implemented to protect information and reduce drag on the department's networks, according to Bell.

Unfortunately, many of the blocked sites are used by soldiers to keep up with their family and friends back home. While soldiers will be able to access the sites from their own computer, the Associated Press points out that DOD computers and networks "are the only ones available to many soldiers and sailors in Iraq and Afghanistan."

The sites covered by the ban are the video-sharing sites YouTube, Metacafe, IFilm, StupidVideos, and FileCabi, the social networking sites MySpace, BlackPlanet and Hi5, music sites Pandora, MTV, and 1.fm, and live365, and the photo-sharing site Photobucket.