North Korea News Podcast by NK News

This week marks 70 years since the start of the Korean War, a truly international conflict with dozens of countries involved.

In an effort to honor and remember the sacrifices of those that fought on both sides of "The Forgotten War," Hannah Y. Kim traveled across six continents to 26 countries that participated in the war. She then followed up on that journey in 2018, ultimately visiting all 50 U.S. states.

Kim joins the NK News Podcast to talk about her journey and how she promotes awareness and appreciation for Korean War veterans through her work, which is featured on koreanwarmemorials.com and remember727.org. Kim's website archives her many interviews with Korean War veterans, as well as photos and videos collected on her journey.

Hannah Y. Kim is the founder of Remember 727, an organization dedicated to remembering the sacrifices of soldiers who fought in the Korean War and the armistice that was signed on July 27, 1953.

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.

Tensions are rising between the two Koreas as increasingly vicious rhetoric from Pyongyang suggests serious provocations could be imminent.

Live from the ferry from Yeongpyeong Island right on the edge of the Northern Limit Line (NLL), the NK News team talks about North Korean pressure tactics, cross-border provocations, and what Seoul may and may not do to try and de-escalate the emerging situation.

Join Korea Risk Group CEO Chad O'Carroll, Professor Andrei Lankov, Professor Andray Abrahamian and fearless host Jacco Zwetsloot in this exclusive roundtable discussion.

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.

Tropes and plot devices used in South Korean movies, television shows, and music depicting North Korea and interactions with North Koreans have changed over time, and often reflect attitudes and relations of a given era.

Stephen Epstein, Director of Asian Languages and Cultures and Victoria University of Wellington, joins the NK News Podcast to talk about how inter-Korean politics and identity are reflected in popular culture, gender, and media representation of North Korean defectors, and how some of them are even becoming media stars in their own right.

He also discusses collaborations with researchers like Christopher Green, and what the hit K-drama "Crash Landing on You" has to say about today's North-South relations.

Stephen Epstein's paper, "The Axis of Vaudeville: Images of North Korea in South Korean Pop Culture," can be found here.

NOTE: the Korean word talbukja (탈북자) is often used in the show. It means North Korean defector.

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.

"Collision in Korea" set a new world record for the largest pro wrestling attendance ever that still stands today -- and it happened in the middle of Pyongyang in 1995.

Former head of World Championship Wrestling (WCW) Eric Bischoff joins the NK News Podcast to discuss the international wrestling business, how it reached North Korea, Muhammad Ali, Antonio Inoki, 2 Cold Scorpio, "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair, and the prospects for sports diplomacy.

Eric Bischoff has written a book about his life in wrestling called "Controversy Creates Cash."

Plus! Nick Bonner joins (01:00:09) to talk about what it was like to plan a 100-plus person tour to Pyongyang just for Collision in Korea.

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.

The U.S.-ROK alliance has served as the linchpin for regional security for over 70 years and continues to be among the most important and consequential institutions and partnerships in Asia.

General Vincent Brooks was the Commander of U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), as well as United Nations Command and Combined Forces Command, from 2016-2018, a period of extraordinary tension and summit diplomacy on the Korean peninsula.

He joins the NK News Podcast to discuss those escalating tensions, the demonstration of capabilities, deterrence, THAAD, U.S. security objectives, 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.

Author John Feffer joins the NK News Podcast to discuss North Korea, its relations with the United States, and his and others' personal experiences traveling to the DPRK. John speaks of relationships of trust between Washington and Pyongyang and explores the idea of whether the Kim Jong Un regime is its own worst enemy.

John also performed a one-man show in Washington DC last year about North Korea; you can watch it here.

John Feffer is director of Foreign Policy In Focus at the Institute for Policy Studies, a progressive think tank based in Washington DC.

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.

Thomas Billhardt is among the most acclaimed German photographers, gaining a reputation for capturing the human and political experience in North Korea, Vietnam, Nicaragua, Vietnam, and elsewhere.

Thomas joins the NK News Podcast to talk about his impressions of North Korea in 1989, where he was dispatched to photograph the 13th World Festival of Youth and Students.

Thomas Billhardt's work can be found here.

With Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang, 1989 | Photo: Thomas Billhardt

About the Festival: the 13th World Festival of Youth and Students was held in the North Korean capital Pyongyang almost thirty years ago next month. A global gathering of international Communist Party-affiliated youth organizations, it represented something of a last hurrah for a world that was soon to disappear in a storm of revolution and unrest.

Hosted by North Korea in large part as a response to the South's successful hosting of the 1988 Summer Olympic Games, the Festival cost the country billions and saw thousands of international students descend on Pyongyang for an event devoted to Anti-Imperialist Solidarity, Peace, and Friendship.

And if you're interested in learning more about the festival, last summer NK News produced a six-part podcast series on it! You can listen to part one here, part two here, part three here, part four here, part five here, and part six 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.

Some 100,000 children were orphaned during the Korean War (1950-53). North Korea decided to send many on their side of the peninsula to Soviet-controlled Eastern Europe for so-called "commissioned education."

South Korean filmmaker Young Kim spent a decade and a half discovering the fates of these children for his new documentary, "Kim Il Sung's Children." He joins the NK News Podcast to discuss the film, the making of, and what he learned.

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.

Is Kim Jong Un alive? Where is he? Why hasn't he been seen in weeks? Who's next in the line of succession?

Amid a storm of global speculation, we gathered a roundtable discussion with host Jacco Zwetsloot, NK News CEO Chad O'Carroll, and NK News reporter Jeongmin Kim.

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.

It's been 500 days since our friend Michael Spavor -- and his fellow Canadian Michael Kovrig -- were taken into custody by the Chinese government, very likely as a result of "hostage diplomacy" with Canada.

This week, Jacco is joined by NK News CEO Chad O'Carroll, Kyungnam University's Dean J. Ouellette, filmmaker Chris Petersen-Clausen, and travel writer Martin Zatko to discuss the conditions Michael is being held in, reminisce about our favorite stories, and talk about what you can do to help him and his family in this difficult time.

Please consider donating to help Michael 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.