BTS rocks, Kim sucks: How Seoul’s loudspeakers seek to sway North Korean minds | NK News
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December 22, 2024

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BTS rocks, Kim sucks: How Seoul’s loudspeakers seek to sway North Korean minds

Border broadcasts feature news, weather, music and more, but sharp criticism of Kim Jong Un risks inciting DPRK response

An anchor reads news about BTS’ chart-topping hits, market prices in North Korea and tips for surviving the summer heat. A famous South Korean trot singer belts out, “Do you want to get over here.” A statement excoriates Kim Jong Un as a “ruthless” and “incompetent dictator” ruining the lives of listeners’ children.

All of this has been part of the propaganda broadcasts that have blared from South Korean loudspeakers on the inter-Korean border this week, NK News has confirmed, a form of retaliation against Pyongyang’s trash balloon launches that aims to agitate North Korean soldiers and residents and perhaps incite defections.

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