The problem with reporting on the DPRK is that information is extremely limited on what is actually going on there. Most reports come from defectors, and said defectors are notoriously dubious in their accounts, something the WikiPedia page on Media Coverage of North Korea spells out quite clearly. These defectors are also held in confined cells for around 6 months before being released to the public in the ROK, in… unkind conditions, and pressured into divulging information. Additionally, defectors are paid for giving testemonials, and these testimonials are paid more the more severe they are. From the Wiki page:
Felix Abt, a Swiss businessman who lived in the DPRK, argues that defectors are inherently biased. He says that 70 percent of defectors in South Korea are unemployed, and selling sensationalist stories is a way for them to make a living.
Side note: there is a great documentary on the treatment of North Korean defectors titled Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang in Seoul, which interviews North Korean defectors and laywers legally defending them, if you’re curious.
In fact, the report is a propaganda piece likely geared at shoring up the rule of Kim Jong Eun, North Korea’s young and relatively new leader, said Sung-Yoon Lee, a professor of Korean studies at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. Most likely, North Koreans don’t take the report literally, Lee told LiveScience.
“It’s more symbolic,” Lee said, adding, “My take is North Koreans don’t believe all of that, but they bring certain symbolic value to celebrating your own identify, maybe even notions of cultural exceptionalism and superiority. It boosts morale.”
As for Radio Free Asia, it is US-government founded and funded. There is good reason to be skeptical of reports sourced entirely from RFA about geopolitical enemies of the US, especially concerning a hermit country with very little accurate information coming out of it due to its secluded nature. Until we see hard evidence, I don’t see why we should trust it, considering the track record of reporting on North Korea.
This does not mean the subject of this article is necessarily false, but it does mean that uncritically accepting it as true when there is a proven track record of outlandish and absurd stories being reported about the DPRK that we should question its validity until proof is provided beyond heresay from a US-government funded media outlet. People are right to distrust the article, and I don’t think this is a good hill to die on and ban people over. I don’t generally believe anything about the DPRK unless there’s hard proof for it because of how notoriously unreliable reporting on it is. You don’t have to support the DPRK to question absurd sensationalist articles.
Thanks! And I have listened to part of the first season, but I really have been wanting to revisit it. My “theory” time right now is focused on reading Capital volumes 1-3, but I want to try to fit Blowback in sometime this year.
The problem with reporting on the DPRK is that information is extremely limited on what is actually going on there.
If Lil Kim can’t handle us making estimated guesses based on the limited facts we receive, he is more than free to open his country to free and clear communications with the rest of the world.
Ill take the limited facts and go ahead and believe this article until I find better facts on the matter, but I’m not going to hold my breath.
No, I want organic facts openly shared but I can’t get that with the obese totalitarian in charge of NK.
🤷 like I said in my first comment, I am willing to adjust my opinion when new truthier facts are shared.
But go ahead and attribute whatever dumbshit take you want to what I actually said. I understand folks like yourself can’t thrive without blind manufactured rage.
The problem with reporting on the DPRK is that information is extremely limited on what is actually going on there. Most reports come from defectors, and said defectors are notoriously dubious in their accounts, something the WikiPedia page on Media Coverage of North Korea spells out quite clearly.
That Wikipedia page is deeply problematic. Do you know who Felix Abt is? He’s one of a few businessmen who went into business in North Korea specifically to get rich off the backs of slave labor there, pioneering the use of the “China +1” strategy to avoid export restrictions for items that are partially manufactured in North Korea and subject to sanctions.
And as you yourself point out, he’s the source on a lot of attempts to whitewash the North Korean government’s treatment of people.
Because of these issues, there is a long history of what we consider legitimate news sources of reporting and then walking back stories. Even the famous “120 dogs” execution ended up to have been a fabrication originating in a Chinese satirical column, reported entirely seriously and later walked back by some news outlets. The famous “unicorn lair” story ended up being a misunderstanding:
I’m not saying that news reports never get it wrong, but do you have reason to believe this report is wrong?
Regarding the haircuts, you are correct that they weren’t specifically state-mandated, but this really did happen. In 2005, they really did run a series on state television called, “Let us trim our hair in accordance with Socialist lifestyle.”
You can watch it online yourself if you look for it, so don’t pretend it didn’t happen.
Finally, the fact that Radio Free Asia and Radio Free Europe receive U.S. government funding doesn’t mean their stories are fictitious. RFA has a sterling fact-checking record.
I didn’t merely link a single source with respect to the “defector storytelling industry,” but an entire documentary on the subject. I can find more sources if you prefer, it’s quite well-documented. Yeonmi Park is a famous “celebrity defector” and her claims are often contradictory.
As for this particular article? The source appears to be The Sun, citing a tangential article from Radio Free Asia, with a final source appearing to be… nothing. The RFA article was on tteokbokki and budae-jjigae, not hot dogs, and the RFA source for that article? “Residents in the country.” In short, there is no hard proof, neither in this article nor the original RFA article.
As for RFA, they have been called out on sharing misleading or fabricated information regarding geopolitical enemies of the US, such as anti-vaccine misinformation about Chinese vaccines. The RFA’s speciality is reporting on United States Geopolitical adversaries, and given that the United States government has a dedicated interest in drumming up negative opinion on them, you have means (no listed source beyond “residents”) and motive. The track record isn’t “sterling,” but “mixed,” I’d say, considering issues like the anti-vaxx misinfo, unless you back that as well (I certainly hope not). The reporter for the tteokbokki article is Moon Sung Whui, who appears to have only been reporting since a few months back in late 2024, so either this is a pseudonym for a reporter who wishes to remain anyonymous, a brand-new reporter, or a ficticious one, even if searching in Hangol as 문성휘 (which they go by in the Korean version of the article).
Even if you accept the RFA article as 100% accurate, that’s not what this article is, as this article originates from The Sun. We don’t even need to discredit the RFA, but understand that this is a completely unverified report from a tabloid being uncritically passed around. Clickbait makes money, and everyone believes anything about the DPRK. That was the point about the haircut video, anyways: misinfo isn’t always entirely inaccurate, it usually relies on subversion based on kernals of truth, or uncritical reporting of dubious sources, ie the source may be “true” in that someone did claim such and such claim, but the validity of the claim is left unquestioned.
The RFA article was dubious, but this is just a copy pasted Sun article as a clickbait based on the first RFA article.
The problem with reporting on the DPRK is that information is extremely limited on what is actually going on there. Most reports come from defectors, and said defectors are notoriously dubious in their accounts, something the WikiPedia page on Media Coverage of North Korea spells out quite clearly. These defectors are also held in confined cells for around 6 months before being released to the public in the ROK, in… unkind conditions, and pressured into divulging information. Additionally, defectors are paid for giving testemonials, and these testimonials are paid more the more severe they are. From the Wiki page:
Side note: there is a great documentary on the treatment of North Korean defectors titled Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang in Seoul, which interviews North Korean defectors and laywers legally defending them, if you’re curious.
Because of these issues, there is a long history of what we consider legitimate news sources of reporting and then walking back stories. Even the famous “120 dogs” execution ended up to have been a fabrication originating in a Chinese satirical column, reported entirely seriously and later walked back by some news outlets. The famous “unicorn lair” story ended up being a misunderstanding:
These aren’t tabloids, these are mainstream news sources. NBC News reported the 120 dogs story. Same with USA Today. The frequently reported concept of “state-mandated haircut styles”, as an example, also ended up being bogus sensationalism. People have made entire videos going over this long-running sensationalist misinformation, why it exists, and debunking some of the more absurd articles.
As for Radio Free Asia, it is US-government founded and funded. There is good reason to be skeptical of reports sourced entirely from RFA about geopolitical enemies of the US, especially concerning a hermit country with very little accurate information coming out of it due to its secluded nature. Until we see hard evidence, I don’t see why we should trust it, considering the track record of reporting on North Korea.
This does not mean the subject of this article is necessarily false, but it does mean that uncritically accepting it as true when there is a proven track record of outlandish and absurd stories being reported about the DPRK that we should question its validity until proof is provided beyond heresay from a US-government funded media outlet. People are right to distrust the article, and I don’t think this is a good hill to die on and ban people over. I don’t generally believe anything about the DPRK unless there’s hard proof for it because of how notoriously unreliable reporting on it is. You don’t have to support the DPRK to question absurd sensationalist articles.
Great read cheers. Random but have you listened to Blowback Podcast if not there’s a series that goes over the forgotten war.
Thanks! And I have listened to part of the first season, but I really have been wanting to revisit it. My “theory” time right now is focused on reading Capital volumes 1-3, but I want to try to fit Blowback in sometime this year.
I feel that tbf I’m on History of the Russian Revolution.
Nice!
If Lil Kim can’t handle us making estimated guesses based on the limited facts we receive, he is more than free to open his country to free and clear communications with the rest of the world.
Ill take the limited facts and go ahead and believe this article until I find better facts on the matter, but I’m not going to hold my breath.
So you openly want the establishment to feed you lies? O.o
No, I want organic facts openly shared but I can’t get that with the obese totalitarian in charge of NK.
🤷 like I said in my first comment, I am willing to adjust my opinion when new truthier facts are shared.
But go ahead and attribute whatever dumbshit take you want to what I actually said. I understand folks like yourself can’t thrive without blind manufactured rage.
Have a great day!
That Wikipedia page is deeply problematic. Do you know who Felix Abt is? He’s one of a few businessmen who went into business in North Korea specifically to get rich off the backs of slave labor there, pioneering the use of the “China +1” strategy to avoid export restrictions for items that are partially manufactured in North Korea and subject to sanctions.
And as you yourself point out, he’s the source on a lot of attempts to whitewash the North Korean government’s treatment of people.
I’m not saying that news reports never get it wrong, but do you have reason to believe this report is wrong?
Regarding the haircuts, you are correct that they weren’t specifically state-mandated, but this really did happen. In 2005, they really did run a series on state television called, “Let us trim our hair in accordance with Socialist lifestyle.”
You can watch it online yourself if you look for it, so don’t pretend it didn’t happen.
Finally, the fact that Radio Free Asia and Radio Free Europe receive U.S. government funding doesn’t mean their stories are fictitious. RFA has a sterling fact-checking record.
I didn’t merely link a single source with respect to the “defector storytelling industry,” but an entire documentary on the subject. I can find more sources if you prefer, it’s quite well-documented. Yeonmi Park is a famous “celebrity defector” and her claims are often contradictory.
As for this particular article? The source appears to be The Sun, citing a tangential article from Radio Free Asia, with a final source appearing to be… nothing. The RFA article was on tteokbokki and budae-jjigae, not hot dogs, and the RFA source for that article? “Residents in the country.” In short, there is no hard proof, neither in this article nor the original RFA article.
As for RFA, they have been called out on sharing misleading or fabricated information regarding geopolitical enemies of the US, such as anti-vaccine misinformation about Chinese vaccines. The RFA’s speciality is reporting on United States Geopolitical adversaries, and given that the United States government has a dedicated interest in drumming up negative opinion on them, you have means (no listed source beyond “residents”) and motive. The track record isn’t “sterling,” but “mixed,” I’d say, considering issues like the anti-vaxx misinfo, unless you back that as well (I certainly hope not). The reporter for the tteokbokki article is Moon Sung Whui, who appears to have only been reporting since a few months back in late 2024, so either this is a pseudonym for a reporter who wishes to remain anyonymous, a brand-new reporter, or a ficticious one, even if searching in Hangol as 문성휘 (which they go by in the Korean version of the article).
Even if you accept the RFA article as 100% accurate, that’s not what this article is, as this article originates from The Sun. We don’t even need to discredit the RFA, but understand that this is a completely unverified report from a tabloid being uncritically passed around. Clickbait makes money, and everyone believes anything about the DPRK. That was the point about the haircut video, anyways: misinfo isn’t always entirely inaccurate, it usually relies on subversion based on kernals of truth, or uncritical reporting of dubious sources, ie the source may be “true” in that someone did claim such and such claim, but the validity of the claim is left unquestioned.
The RFA article was dubious, but this is just a copy pasted Sun article as a clickbait based on the first RFA article.
He WANTS to believe.
And I might want to leave this Community.
Not because of the Article, but because of the behavior of its Admin.