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| U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hand with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ahead of their dinner at the Metropole Hotel in Hanoi, Wednesday. / Capture from White House Twitter |
By Kim Hyun-bin
As the summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has ended without producing any agreement, now all eyes are on how North Korean media will portray the historic talks.
In the past, North Korean media were notorious for name-calling and condemnations for any person, organization, and country that stood in its path.
But following the first U.S.-North Korea summit last June in Singapore which was a promising and groundbreaking event easing tension on the Korean Peninsula Washington-Pyongyang relations, the North Korean media have much toned down its rhetoric against the U.S.
It is to be seen whether the media will revive its hostile stance and offensive rhetoric against the U.S., like they used to call the U.S. president a "dotard."
Considering the atmosphere that the two countries do not want to rupture the talks despite the current setback, North Korean media's expression about the U.S. may not be that harsh.
But it is very likely that they may blame the U.S. side for the failure of a deal and highlight Kim's efforts in the summit, as it would be unacceptable for the media of the dictatorial state to portray its "dear leader" has failed in anything.
Until Thursday morning before the talks between the two leaders began and failed in Hanoi, Vietnam, the North Korean media have ramped up positive reporting about the summit, unprecedentedly covering the event in a swift and extensive manner.
The Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party of Korea, plastered the first two pages of a special six-page edition with 17 pictures of the two leaders' historic meeting, starting from their first encounter in Hanoi and the last social dinner the two leaders seemed to enjoy.
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| Front page of Rodong Sinmun / Yonhap |
The first page highlighted Kim and Trump's summit with a large bold headline saying Kim met Trump and had talks and dinner. Beneath were large color photos of Trump and Kim shaking hands at the entrance of the meeting hall at the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hotel in Hanoi.
"The endless confrontations and tensions have come to an end as North Korea and the U.S. heads of states showed passion and effort, being able to enter a new era of peace. Their extraordinary decisions have led to the historic second North Korea-U.S. summit in Hanoi, Vietnam," the paper wrote.
On the second page, there were 13 pictures mostly from the dinner.
"Officials from the two countries sat around the round table and the dinner progressed in a peaceful and friendly atmosphere," the paper wrote. "They exchanged sincere and in-depth opinions to bring out comprehensive and ground-breaking results in this summit."
The Korean Central News Agency, Pyongyang's state-run news agency, also had extensive coverage of the summit. It made the first report just eight hours after the dinner finished ― unusually fast reporting considering North Korean media, controlled by the regime, usually report events related to its leader one or more days after the events have taken place.
It said the two leaders exchanged "candid and truthful dialogue," adding the historic second North Korea-U.S. summit began following the two leaders' determination to put an end to the vicious circle of confrontation and bring a new era of peace and prosperity.
