Media Representation of NK Event Reflection
On March 11th, 2021, Re’Generation Movement co-hosted a virtual panel event titled “Media Representation of North Korea” (a recording can be found here). Genia Kim, Korea Peace & Advocacy Intern for Re’Gen, shares her reflections on the event.
I attended the event hosted by Liberty in North Korea (LiNK) at Emory University and Re’Generation Movement about media representation of North Korea. The speakers, Sokeel Park (South Korea Country Director at LiNK) and Eunhee Park (North Korean escapee and Youtuber), discussed their views on how the media portrays North Korea. They began by mentioning how what we know about North Korea is only what we see on the news—stories about Kim Jong-un and nuclear testing concerns. Simultaneously, in North Korea, they are taught that America is the enemy and South Korea is struggling to survive. Sokeel and Eunhee emphasized the importance of making North Korea more personable, after all, there are 25 million people there. However, does this take away from the humanitarian concerns of the people? How can the media represent or discuss more about a country that is not willing to be more open to the public? Does it matter if these representations are false? I could not help but consider these implications.
Eunhee Park told us about how she was on a South Korean TV show called “Now On My Way to Meet You” (이제 만나러 갑니다) where she would discuss her experiences in North Korea. There was a pressure to share even her most traumatic stories to be “a better refugee.” Failing to do so risked being cut from the show and losing her source of income. While she decided to leave the show, she mentioned how others’ memories were often fabricated based on what they heard from others. The inability to fact check these people made it easy. To what extent can we trust private accounts? How does this affect the narrative that we know today? Memory is constructed and changes—no one can remember the exact details of their life for decades. Over time, society influences us to remember and characterize things so that it fits with the paradigm we accept.
Eunhee also discussed her view towards reunification. She said that her original view towards reunification was very positive. However, she now thinks that it is nearly impossible. It would require North Korea “to open their political situation,” which I understood as North Korea must stand down. I would have to agree, but there are still questions about this idea. Not that I would particularly enjoy living under Kim Jong-un, but why should North Korea be the one to “stand down”? Is their lifestyle not valid? When we discuss North Korea, are we discussing the government or the people? Is it the same?
On a more lighthearted note, both Eunhee and Sokeel said that they appreciated the drama “Crash Landing on You” (사랑의 불시착). There were all sorts of people, good and bad, creating an image of North Korea beyond the political issues. I also enjoyed watching this drama. I cannot say this drastically improved my view or understanding towards the country; however, it gives some personality to the militaristic dictatorship country that exists in my mind.
