The bin Laden home videos released Saturday provide evidence of the terrorist leader's activities and lifestyle at his compound in Pakistan.
Officials say that the tapes, seized from bin Laden's Pakistan compound, show that he was still very much in control of his organization.
The videos show that bin Laden "remained active in al Qaeda terrorist propaganda operations, especially in shaping his own image," said a senior intelligence official granted anonymity under the ground rules of a briefing at the Pentagon.
The audio track of the videos was removed, but otherwise the tapes remain unaltered.
CNN's national security contributor Frances Townsend said U.S. officials "picked these videos pretty deliberately," as portions of the tapes show bin Laden's vanity and reflect the shoddy production values of his tapes.
The terrorist leader misses a cue in one video, and another shows a wrinkled backdrop visible behind him. A video recorded in October or November of last year shows him with his graying beard dyed black.
