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North Korea may have launched its largest intercontinental ballistic missile – and put the world on notice.
But it’s the way the news was relayed on state-run television that has caused widespread bafflement.
Instead of triumphant – but staid – tones, this time North Koreans were treated to what they are not supposed to have: a Hollywood-style movie.
It had it all – Kim Jong-un in leather jacket and dark glasses, video effects and dramatic music.
North Korean Central Television usually broadcasts a repetitive diet of Kim family propaganda, alongside military band concerts and feature films about patriotism and feats of labour.
Anything that deviates from this sticks out like a sore thumb.
That’s why the coverage of the launch of Hwasong-17 was so different.
Notionally it came in a news bulletin, but the style was anything but.
Viewers were given 15 minutes of video effects, staged drama, and the sight of Kim Jong-un whipping off his dark glasses to look directly into the camera as if to say, “Let’s do this”.
The stirring music and multiple shots of the missile launch were interspersed with the triumphant tones of veteran newsreader Ri Chun-hee, known in the West as North Korea’s “Pink Lady”.
Social media users were quick to compare it to Top Gun, Thunderbirds and Bollywood movies.
Some said Kim and his generals walking out of the hangar at Pyongyang’s international airport in front of the missile launcher also appeared to mimic the 1983 blockbuster movie The Right Stuff.
So was it meant for North Koreans?
This is all new to North Korean TV viewers. Apart from media smuggled in from abroad – for which those involved risk severe penalties – there has been virtually nothing like this on North Korean screens before.
It seems that the country’s powerful Propaganda and Agitation Department knew there was a balancing act involved here. They created a video that looks new and exciting to domestic viewers – and thus serves as a boost both to national pride and the image of Kim Jong-un, whose recent weight loss allows for more of a dynamic new all-action personality.
It’s a far cry from the last time anything like this was attempted – the Supreme Leader’s 2019 ride up sacred Mount Paektu, in which the overweight Kim cut an awkward figure on horseback.
It’s impossible to tell what North Koreans watching would have made of it, but it’s likely that most would have blinked rapidly – unable to understand the sudden change of tone and colour, not used to such effects. The minority who might have watched a Hollywood movie before may feel confused and ask themselves if this was a mistake, a one-off, or a tantalising sign of change.
As always, the answers may not be forthcoming any time soon.
The people behind North Korea’s propaganda also knew that the rocket launch video would be seen and talked about abroad, so perhaps all the effects and Hollywood movie stuff were deliberate – even though to those used to this stuff, the package may appear cliched, and even unintentionally hilarious.
What’s the message?
Overall, it’s one of total confidence.
The missile was launched from Pyongyang Sunan International Airport 25km (16 miles) from the capital. A failure could have been catastrophic for both the airport itself and nearby residents.
Hwasong-17 is a weapon of which Kim Jong-un is intensely proud.
He is delivering a message to the rest of the world – especially the US – that North Korea has the ability to strike anywhere if provoked.
Sending this message in Hollywood style may have been seen in Pyongyang as particularly poignant.
America remains a constant target for Pyongyang’s external messaging: While the Ukraine War has barely been mentioned in North Korean media over the last month, when it has, the blame is placed firmly on the US.
