I cover a wide range of stories about Korean society — one of the most dynamic places in the world. To me, journalism means being on the ground, uncovering untold stories and amplifying marginalized voices, especially in an era when AI is reshaping the media landscape. That’s why I’m always here to listen. Tips and stories are welcome — feel free to reach out via email. Before becoming a journalist, I traveled through 24 countries over 702 days, served two years as a military police officer in the Republic of Korea Air Force and later studied filmmaking at the Korea National University of Arts.
REPORTERSNOTEBOOK Korea Times reporter flips through Kim Jong-un-centric pages from N. Korea
The front page of the Jan. 30 edition of Rodong Sinmun, the newspaper of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party of Korea, is displayed at the National Assembly Library in Yeouido, Seoul, Wednesday. Korea Times Photo by Park Ung
By Park Ung
In North Korea, everything centers on Kim Jong-un and boosting productivity
After years in the newsroom, one question lingered: What are my counterparts in North Korea writing about?
The answer this reporter found Wednesday while reading Rodong Sinmun and Pyongyang Times, North Korea’s main Korean- and English-language newspapers, was simple: They were loyally reporting on the greatness of leader Kim Jong-un and how people nationwide were, according to the paper, improving their lives by following his guidance.
For decades, however, South Koreans’ access to North Korean newspapers remained restricted under the National Security Act, the main law governing activities involving North Korea.
That changed last December, when President Lee Jae Myung ordered broader availability of North Korean materials and the Ministry of Unification allowed Rodong Sinmun to be read freely at 181 holding institutions nationwide.
To see how South Koreans are making use of their first open access to a North Korean newspaper — and how my counterparts in Pyongyang work — this reporter headed to the National Assembly Library to read Rodong Sinmun firsthand.
Rodong Sinmun was displayed alongside other South Korean newspapers, placed right beside The Korea Times. The latest issue on display, dated Jan. 30, featured Kim Jong-un attending a ceremony for a regional development project in South Hwanghae Province.
Copies of Rodong Sinmun, the newspaper of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party of Korea, are stacked next to The Korea Times at the National Assembly Library in Yeouido, Seoul, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Park Ung
What stood out was that the name of Kim and his remarks appeared in darker, bolder type than the rest of the text. After his name first appeared, nearly every subsequent paragraph began with “Comrade Kim Jong-un,” as if no other words could come first.
That emphasis extended to nearly all articles, which often opened with the identical line: “Respected Comrade Kim Jong-un said as follows.” They then introduced his remarks and how workers at farms, steel mills and factories nationwide were carrying out his guidance to boost productivity.
It also carried stories unlikely to make headlines elsewhere, including brief anecdotes about ordinary residents on their way to work, each woven with praise for the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea and Kim.
The front page of the Jan. 28 edition of Rodong Sinmun, the newspaper of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party of Korea, is displayed at the National Assembly Library in Yeouido, Seoul, Wednesday. Kim Jong-un’s name and remarks praising the strong spirit of the country's southeastern Kangwon Province appear in bold type in the second and third paragraph. Korea Times photo by Park Ung
Page 6, the final page, covered international news and featured columns critical of capitalism. Foreign leaders were seldom named, except those from close allies such as Russia, with the paper using generic references like “the French president.”
In the Jan. 25 edition, a report on U.S. President Donald Trump's ambition to take over Greenland avoided mentioning him by name, referring only to “the United States.” Photographs in the paper appeared stiff and staged, reminiscent of old movie posters rather than candid news images.
Aside from this reporter, no one else was reading Rodong Sinmun.
“When it was first opened to the public, some reporters came to read it. Most visitors rarely do,” Kim Bo-ram, who oversees newspaper subscriptions and access at the National Assembly Library, told The Korea Times. “Occasionally, visitors just take a photo of it, perhaps to post on Instagram.”
Kim said it takes about a month for Rodong Sinmun to reach Seoul.
“A government-authorized company imports North Korean publications via China and ships them to South Korea, where relevant agencies purchase them. Customs inspections at Incheon Port are also more thorough because they originate from North Korea,” Kim said.
Workers are seen at the Wonsan Chemical Factory in North Korea’s Kangwon Province, published in the Jan. 30 edition of Rodong Sinmun, the newspaper of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea, available at the National Assembly Library in Yeouido, Seoul, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Park Ung
Since 1970, under the National Security Act, which criminalizes the production, distribution or possession of materials promoting anti-state propaganda, North Korean materials have been subject to guidelines imposed by the National Intelligence Service and its predecessors.
The guidelines classify North Korean materials as “special” — those praising the regime or rejecting liberal democracy — or “general.”
To access materials classified as “special,” readers must log their name, affiliation, contact details and purpose and present identification, and wait while staff retrieve each issue.
While Rodong Sinmun is now classified as general material, other North Korean publications, including Pyongyang Times, remain “special materials.”
When asked for the latest edition of Pyongyang Times, a staff member brought a copy dated Dec. 20 last year, noting that few people request it. The first page covered Kim’s visit to Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, the mausoleum of his grandfather Kim Il-sung and father Kim Jong-il, and to a hospital in Kusong, North Pyongan Province.
One passage captured the tone: “All the participants raised enthusiasitc cheers with the unbound pride of holding in high esteem of the great leader, who takes loving care of all the people across the country with ardent affection, taking them to his arms and showing them love continuously, as the father of the large socialist family and the boundless reverence for him.”