An Inside Look at North Korean Propaganda

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By the author of The Faithful Prepper, The Prepper’s Guide to Post-Disaster Communications, and Zombie Choices.

To get a better idea of what’s really going on, sometimes you have to take a peek behind the curtain. And perhaps there’s no place better to do that than with North Korea.

Let’s be honest: when is North Korea not in the news? It seems like every other month, the world sits back in horror and watches as there’s yet another big no-no NoKo performs.

Need some proof?

One of the things we’ve seen just within the past two months is a North Korean intermediate-range ballistic missile being launched OVER Japan, flying the longest distance yet we’ve seen a NoKo missile fly. Tokyo actually issued an alert for residents to take cover, though they later said that they didn’t think it was actually going to hit Japan based on the trajectory.

Then, last month, they revised their nuke laws so they could “legally” engage in a preemptive nuclear strike.

Earlier this month, North Korea announced that the recent missile tests that they had been performing were all tactical nuclear drills they were running to simulate hitting South Korean airports and military basis. South Korea doesn’t have nukes, by the way.

And then you have October 12, when two long-range strategic cruise missiles were launched from North Korea at a target 1240 miles away.

They’re clearly a problem, and this isn’t news to anyone. If you are concerned about the North Korean wild card, you may want to check out our nuclear survival webinar that’s coming up. You can register here.

But one of the things that I’ve been thinking about a lot of late has been the power of propaganda. I forget who it was on The Organic Prepper, but somebody recently wrote an article in which they mentioned the book Wild Swans, a true story that helps the West to understand just what it is that people in China are living through on a daily basis. You can pick it up for less than two bucks.

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer, right?

Knowledge is power.

For example, did you know that North Korea recently switched on a new shortwave broadcasting station using a radio mode called DRM, and nobody can really figure out why? Barely anybody in North Korea has a DRM-capable receiver, so who is the target audience? What’s the purpose here? (You can read the details on page 12 here.)

Knowledge is power, and it’s beneficial to know what exactly is going through the heads of the people that like shooting missiles over other countries just for the heck of it. (Commenters, yes, I know they were sending a message and testing equipment. So it wasn’t “just” for the heck of it. But you get my point.)

You’ve likely already heard some stories about what life is like in North Korea, but I recently discovered a resource that delves into what the propaganda within North Korea actually looks like. I think it’s a pretty interesting find, and I think that you may find it of interest as well.

(Check out our free QUICKSTART Guide to building a 3-layer food storage plan if you’re new to prepping.)

A peek behind the curtain…

It’s called Behind the Curtain, and to date, this is the most fascinating analysis of North Korean propaganda that I’ve yet to find. It’s a blog filled with information I have absolutely no idea how the authors were able to collect without ending up being caught.

They openly admit that they’ve smuggled in radio equipment throughout the country, have taken photographs throughout just about every NoKo province, and have all kinds of other information that I have literally no idea how they would have ever gathered without raising some serious eyebrows. Imagine Locked Up Abroad on steroids. That’s the game these guys are playing.

I was initially slightly concerned that the authors don’t seem to have posted in a bit of time, but it appears they’re fine. I think, most likely, they’re just having trouble getting back in there. Things changed a bit in 2020 when it appears their last book was scheduled to be released, so I doubt they’ll be making any more return trips anytime soon, especially considering that it doesn’t even look like the guys going in there blend in. When you’re the lone white guy in North Korea, I imagine you draw a bit of attention.

Also, I think there’s something to be said for publishing an ongoing project in one of the most restrictive and dangerous nations on earth before it’s complete. North Korea has probably learned of the project, and they’ve clearly seen the equipment that’s being used to gather the info as a picture was taken of it and posted to the internet. I don’t think trying to get back in there with the same piece of gear would be a good decision in the future. Not that I’m detracting from their work at all; I’m just saying that’s why they probably haven’t been back.

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I highly recommend checking Behind the Curtain out.

It’s some rather bizarre and spooky stuff, but it’s well worth taking a look over as it’ll help you to get a better understanding of some of what is going on out there in the world beyond your cul-de-sac. You can read some articles and see photos from each book for free here.

What do you think, though? Have you heard of this project before? Are there others like it you’re aware of that the rest of us are not? Are you interested in the secrets of North Korea? Let us know in the comments below.

About Aden

Aden Tate is a regular contributor to TheOrganicPrepper.com and TheFrugalite.com. Aden runs a micro-farm where he raises dairy goats, a pig, honeybees, meat chickens, laying chickens, tomatoes, mushrooms, and greens. Aden has four published books, What School Should Have Taught You, The Faithful Prepper,  An Arm and a Leg, The Prepper’s Guide to Post-Disaster Communications, and Zombie Choices. You can find his podcast The Last American on Preppers’ Broadcasting Network.