Patton warns that information passed through a military chain of command can become distorted before it reaches senior officers. Reports may exaggerate success, danger or enemy strength because they are produced under pressure, based on incomplete observation or influenced by the perspective of those providing them. Senior commanders therefore need to treat such information with caution rather than accepting it at face value.

The fuller passage emphasises the importance of judging the reliability and circumstances of a report. Information gathered in darkness, confusion or immediately after combat may be especially uncertain, while accounts from wounded soldiers may reflect fear, shock or limited knowledge of the wider situation. Patton’s point is not that reports are useless, but that their accuracy must be assessed critically. Decisions should take account of possible exaggeration, incomplete evidence and the conditions under which information was obtained.

Full quotation

“Reports: In war nothing is ever as bad, or as good, as it is reported to Higher Headquarters. Any reports which emanate from a unit after dark—that is, where the knowledge has been obtained after dark—should be viewed with skepticism by the next higher unit. Reports by wounded men are always exaggerated and favor the enemy.”