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KCTV’s slow move to high-definition, what’s taking so long?
There was a little bit of excitement among North Korea watchers, myself included, earlier this year when the state TV broadcaster, Korean Central Television, took its first step towards high-definition broadcasting. It was signaled by a switch in satellite transmission formats that increased the available screen resolution by more than five times, from just over 414,000 pixels…
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Changes in North Korean TV presentation
North Korean TV news doesn’t change very much. Centrally programmed from Pyongyang, the news can be counted on the provide an update of the work of Kim Jong Un (usually depicted in still photos rather than video), commentary on issues in South Korea and the U.S., reports on innovation in industry, medicine, education and farming, and…
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Reception check: KCTV’s new satellite feed
A couple of weeks ago I reported that satellite monitors had found a new feed of Korean Central Television on Intelsat 21, a satellite above the Atlantic that covers all of the Americas and west Europe. Today I had a chance to check it out. The feed is being broadcast in standard definition PAL. That isn’t…
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More details on Pyongyang’s new satellite center
North Korea’s new satellite control center has been located. Thanks to TV images broadcast on state television, Curtis Melvin was quickly able to match the building with one he’d been observing under construction in central Pyongyang. He reports it’s in the Pothonggang District and estimates the size at about 570 square meters. Satellite images available through Google…
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Jail, probabtion for exports to North Korea
A Taiwanese businessman has been sentenced to 3 years probation and a $250 fine for his part in an attempt to export sanctioned equipment from the U.S. to North Korea. Yueh Hsun “Gary” Tsai was sentenced on Friday at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in Chicago after pleading guilty to creating…
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North Korea has a new satellite control center
North Korea has built a new satellite control center, according to state-run media reports on Sunday. Existence of the center was revealed with news that Kim Jong Un visited the site recently. The exact date of the visit or its location wasn’t disclosed. A little of the center could be seen in images carried by…
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NASA captures seasonal fires in North Korea
A NASA satellite has captured the seasonal fires burning across North Korea at present as farmers clear land for fresh crops. In images snapped by its Terra satellite, smoke can be seen getting carried by the wind right across the Sea of Japan to over Hokkaido and northern Japan. The space agency’s analysis says that…
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More on UN meeting, silencing of DPRK microphone
I now have the full video of the incident on Thursday at the United Nations when a North Korean diplomat interrupted a discussion on human rights. It would be funny if it wasn’t so sad. At the meeting, the diplomat began speaking just after a defector ended his speech and without being recognized by the chair, journalist Barbara…
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DPRK diplomat disrupts Human Rights meeting
A North Korean delegate interrupted an event being held at the United Nations on Thursday that was focusing on Human Rights in the DPRK. The event was organized by the U.S. and featured Ambassadors Samantha Power and Robert King on the panel alongside journalist Barbara Demick and others. There were 23 defectors in attendance, according to the…
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North Korea is second worst for press freedom in latest CPJ survey
North Korea is the second most-censored nation on earth, according to a new ranking by the Committee to Protect Journalists. For anyone that knows North Korea or has been paying attention to press freedom studies and rankings, the news hardly comes as a surprise. The government has complete control over the news media, which is limited…
