North Korean Policy Elites - Defense Technical Information Center

This selection of news items presents few surprises. More attention is devoted to Kim
Jong-il (and his mother) in the domestic press than in KCNA; Kim Il-sung is infrequently
mentioned. More international news is presented in KCNA and Nodong Sinmun than on
domestic radio and television. “Newsworthy” items are scarce in all the media. On this date,
news relating to the United States appeared in all the media except KCBS, and all the news about
the United States was negative. None of the news items on North Korea’s domestic situation was
the least bit negative; in fact, the only negative domestic items ever to appear are veiled
references to the need for better social order and criticism of bureaucrats for failing to work more
energetically.
The news presented in these four channels is consistent with two themes. First, that the
domestic and foreign policies of the Kim regime are correct and successful. Second, that Japan,
the United States, and some elements in the ROK threaten the freedom of peace-loving people.
These themes are two aspects of one grand theme of legitimacy: the DPRK under the leadership
of Kim Jong-il is the best country in the world to live in.
Foreign sources wishing to communicate with the DPRK audience through the domestic
media are faced with an opportunity and a challenge. The opportunity is that a scarcity of
international stories in the North Korean domestic press makes any international news item stand
out. The challenge is that the North Korean audience has been conditioned to expect that
anything related to the United States is negative, and so U.S. initiatives are likely to be
interpreted in a negative manner.
F. FOREIGN NEWS SOURCES
In principle, North Koreans should be unable to gain access to any foreign news sources.
Possession of a radio with an unfixed dial, listening to foreign radio or television broadcasts,
possessing foreign video or audiotapes, and reading foreign papers or magazines are all grounds
for detention. Inspectors make surprise visits to households to check on radios, and defectors say
that many North Koreans returning from overseas discard their imported radios rather than come
under a cloud of suspicion. 53 Speaking with visiting foreigners invites a subsequent interview
with the police. But the Kim regime has not achieved complete control over its citizens, because
complete technical control cannot be achieved and the controllers can easily be bribed.
Although the government tries to jam foreign broadcasts, they do sometimes get through,
and some people risk listening to them with foreign or altered radios. The ROK government
53 Kang Chol-hwan, “North Koreans Watch South Korean Videos in Pyongyang, Wonsan,” Chosun ilbo, August 21,
2003, Internet version. FBIS KPP20030822000038.
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