N. Korea news: one source tells all

Kim probably signs off on or edits the most sensitive propaganda, sources say. His portrait commands the cover of a small book issued in the 1980s called "The Great Teacher of Journalists."

Typical is this sentence: "The Great Leader, the Dear Comrade Kim Jong Il, is always among journalists and teaches them [of] every detailed problem ... and kindly leads them to write ... excellent articles that arouse the sentiment of the masses...."

The work ranges from tips on how to count a grove of pepper trees accurately to more universal subjects like "making political integrity immortal" in editorials.

Those raised in Western democracies can't easily understand the kind of nation the Kim family created, says Mr. Darewicz. The state is not created for individuals to live in; it is not a "society" in the Western sense of the term.

Rather, North Korea operates as a combination of Confucianism, communism, and a cult of the divinity of the Kim family.

"The state was not made for people as we understand it in the Western sense; it is made to be ruled," says Darewicz, noting that the people live for the country and serve the ruler.

"By using war as a code word, the regime propaganda keeps control," he says.

"If you are hungry, or have no clothes, or there's no electricity, it doesn't matter," Darewicz adds. "What you say is that you are preparing for war. Anything can be excused as part of the war effort."

Mr. Becker says that propaganda is far less persuasive than before, and that the famine and death of 3 million people in the late 1990s broke the hold of the Kim family ideology.

He argues that the propaganda state has been replaced by a terror state.

"Does it matter if Koreans believe or don't believe in propaganda if they are controlled by a system of terror and executions?" he asks.

One other new development, Mr. Bradner points out, is the new cash culture on the street. It is yet to be determined how that will change what is still an isolated nation that listens to one message and one messenger.

BEIJING - In Pyongyang, the rules are very specific about how physically to handle the Kim image.

No one is permitted to point casually at a portrait of Kim Jong Il or his father, Kim Il Sung, the founder of North Korea. If you find yourself holding a book with a picture of a Kim on the cover, you'd best carry it with two hands, face up, in a dignified manner. And no thumb or fingers are ever allowed to touch or cover Kim's face.

The image and name of the Kims are deeply ingrained as the sacred goods of North Korea, and a special etiquette has evolved in dealing with them. Rules exist for handling, carrying, hanging, and even disposing of Kim faces and portraits. There are also rituals for their printed names.

It is all part of a culture of propaganda designed to ensure permanent collective devotion among the North Korean people. No portrait of Dear Leader or Great Leader is to be folded. No newspaper issued on the birthday of Kim Jong Il or his father, when the photo is likely to be a full page, should be covered or used to wrap anything. Once a newspaper with a major photo of Kim is old or worn out, it may not be tossed out, but must be brought to a special collection point where the image is properly discarded.

A few years ago, prior to a special festival attended by many foreigners, a special 100-note currency was issued, using the Kim Il Sung face.

But it was quickly withdrawn from circulation after it was discovered that foreigners were casually folding the bills and putting them in wallets placed next to the derrière.

In writing about Kim, the name or character may not be casually deleted. In fact, the editing of journals and books mostly still takes place on paper. Journalists and writers must not remove Kim's name from a sentence by crossing it out. Instead, The name must be circled, and only then removed.

And in published material, direct quotes by Kim or his father should always appear in a manner similar to how many Bible publishers treat the words of New Testament figures - in bold or illuminated type.

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