Internet and Journalism in North Korea: Strict Media Control in the Globalization Era
Proceedings of The World Conference on Social Sciences and Humanities
Year: 2019
DOI:
Internet and Journalism in North Korea: Strict Media Control in the Globalization Era
Erdem Güven
ABSTRACT:
In this research I will try to examine the structure of the online newspapers – Rodong Sinmun and Pyongyang Times – English pages which are published compatible with the official North Korean ideology, Juche. As it is well-known, all kinds of media are under the strict control of the North Korean government. Newspapers and internet are also takes their share from that control. Media is also serving as a propaganda tool of the Kim Family and the Juche ideology. North Korean online newspapers such as Rodong Sinmun and Pyongyang Times are published in English and some other foreign languages in order to propagandize the other nations about the achievements of the ideology and the country. In this research, first of all we will try to understand the main structure of the media in general under the banner of the Juche ideology. After understanding the main structure, the brief history of the press and journalism in North Korea will be given. After 1990’s the collapse of the USSR and the Eastern Bloc also affected the North Korean politics by forcing to become a more isolated country in the age of internet and globalization. This research also points out how North Korean government is responding to the globalization process and how it uses the internet in the country while protecting the Juche system. Along with the literature review method, the historical descriptive model will be used in order to explain the situation.
Keywords: Juche ideology, North Korea, Media control, Newspapers in the North Korea,
Internet in North Korea.
Erdem Güven
Assoc. Prof, Kastamonu University Journalism Dept., Turkey