North Korea News Podcast by NK News

In the second half of a two-part interview with NK News (part one can be found here), Pastor Cho Hun Jung discusses prospects for unification, family reunions and the politicization of what many see as benign inter-Korean issues. He also talks about the illusion of South Korea's sovereignty on inter-Korean issues and why human rights should be considered relative.

Pastor Cho is a standing member of the South Korean June 15 Joint Committee and a representative of the committee’s Seoul branch. The June 15, 2000 North-South Korea Joint Declaration can be found here.

Opinions and ideas discussed in this interview are the speakers’ own and do not represent NK News.

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted exclusively by NK News, covering all things DPRK — from news and extended interviews with leading experts in the field to insight from our very own journalists.

In this two-part interview, Pastor Cho Hun Jung discusses why he thinks bibles and leaflet launches should be stopped, the legacy of the Korean War and the evolution of inter-Korean diplomacy from the South's military dictatorships to democracy.

Pastor Cho is a standing member of the South Korean June 15 Joint Committee and a representative of the committee's Seoul branch. The June 15, 2000 North-South Korea Joint Declaration can be found here.

Opinions and ideas discussed in this interview are the speakers' own and do not represent NK News.

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted exclusively by NK News, covering all things DPRK: from news and extended interviews with leading experts in the field to insight from our very own journalists.

Former NK News managing editor Oliver Hotham discusses his years of reporting on North Korea, the existence of personality cults and Tintin, and offers advice for getting started in the news industry.

Article mentioned in the show: Being gay in the DPRK.

Also, would you like to pitch an article to new Managing Editor Kelly Kasulis? Read our pitching guidelines and then get in touch via email at [email protected]!

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted exclusively by NK News, covering all things DPRK: from news and extended interviews with leading experts in the field to insight from our very own journalists.

Veteran journalist Michael Breen reflects on his career reporting on the Korean peninsula, his time as a foreign correspondent and his multiple visits to North Korea.

Breen has worked as a journalist for The Guardian, The Times and the Washington Times and also founded Insight Communications Consultants. In this latest podcast episode, Breen discusses his new book, "The New Koreans" and shares his most high-profile experiences, such as meeting former North Korean leader Kim Il Sung.

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by NK News and covering all things DPRK, from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field to insight from our very own journalists.

Poet, writer and actor Benjamin Zephaniah joins the NK News podcast to talk about his visits to North Korea. This includes breaking vegan bread with a North Korean chef, reading and teaching poetry with university students in Pyongyang, Rastafarianism and why he believes there's nothing like people power to reunify the Korean peninsula.

About the podcast: The NK News podcast is a weekly podcast hosted exclusively by NK News, covering all things DPRK: from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field and insight from our very own journalists.

Humanitarian balloon launches into North Korea have become a divisive issue in recent months. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's sister, Kim Yo Jong, harshly condemned leafleting balloon launches while Seoul moved to stop them in hopes of returning to the days of heightened inter-Korean diplomacy.

But as Voice of the Martyrs Korea (VOMK) CEO Eric Foley explains in this NK News podcast episode, not all launches are the same — nor are all groups and individuals who send humanitarian goods, aid or religious items similarly motivated.

In this episode, Eric Foley discusses his organization's efforts to send bibles into North Korea. He also talks about the underground Christian community in North Korea, punishments for Christianity in the DPRK and the possible legal challenges VOMK may face due to South Korea's sudden crackdown on leafleting activities.

You can find Eric Foley's book, "These are the generations," here. You can also find an article he wrote in 2018 for NK News mentioned in this podcast interview here.

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted exclusively by NK News, covering all things DPRK: from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field and insight from our very own journalists.

Few in South Korea — much less abroad — know that six of their fellow citizens are currently imprisoned in North Korea. Family members seldom speak publicly and the government answers questions only when asked.

While Donald Trump was energized to secure the release of three Korean American individuals before meeting Kim Jong Un in 2018, there were few calls for President Moon Jae-in to do the same during the three inter-Korean summits of the same year.

Their cases are complicated by the fact that neither Korea officially recognizes the legal system of the other, as well as the fact that there may be some truth to Pyongyang’s accusations of espionage.

Korea Risk Group CEO Chad O'Carroll and NK News Correspondent Jeongmin Kim join the podcast to talk about their recent investigation, which can be read here.

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted exclusively by NK News, covering all things DPRK: from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field and insight from our very own journalists.

Christianity has an odd history in North Korea. Pyongyang was once known as the "Jerusalem of the East" and North Korea's founding father Kim Il Sung himself grew up steeped in Christian traditions.

Though North Korea's well-known human rights abuses include the suppression of religious freedom, there is in fact a small, state-sanctioned community of Christians that appear to be genuinely pious.

Director for International Affairs at the World Council of Churches Peter Prove joins the NK News Podcast to talk about this community, international representation, the difficulty with gauging non-official religiosity in the North, and more.

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted exclusively by NK News, covering all things DPRK: from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field and insight from our very own journalists.

Paul White is the editor of DPRK Business Monthly who was previously English-language narrator at Pyongyang’s Kumsusan Palace of the Sun mausoleum.

He joined the NK News Podcast to discuss his decades of experience in East Asia, editing North Korean novels and propaganda, as well as business and investment opportunities in the country.

Paul's email: [email protected].

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted exclusively by NK News, covering all things DPRK: from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field and insight from our very own journalists.

We may be witnessing a step back from the brink of serious provocations on the Korean peninsula, following an abrupt shift in North Korea's official rhetoric last week.

But is demolishing the liaison office as far as Pyongyang will go, or will things get worse before they get better?

Join Korea Risk Group CEO Chad O’Carroll, NK News Managing Editor Oliver Hotham, NK News correspondent Jeongmin Kim, and host Jacco Zwetsloot in this roundtable discussion on current inter-Korean tensions.

About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted exclusively by NK News, covering all things DPRK: from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field and insight from our very own journalists.