Redwood City: Stanford University Press, 2024. US$28.00, paper. ISBN 9781503640870.
Technology and external media (South Korea’s) have reached even North Koreans, among the most isolated population in the world. Through in-depth interviews of 14 North Korean resettlers in South Korea, as well as other sources, Millennial North Korea by Suk-Young Kim explores how millennials in North Korea are learning to “live creatively with surveillance, not just passively under surveillance” (73). As emphasized throughout the book, technology cuts both ways, serving both state and society, enabling both oppression and resistance.
Chapters 1 and 2 provide the historical context necessary for understanding North Korea today—from the state drive for digitization even during the Great Famine period (1995–1999) and greater surveillance of phone users (chapter 1)—to the multifaceted experiences of millennials from different socioeconomic backgrounds but who nevertheless use media creatively in response to state efforts at control (chapter 2). Chapters 3 and 4 delve into the influence of South Korean media on the North, with chapter 3 analyzing popular TV dramas and chapter 4 other cultural imports, including South Korean songs, films, and variety shows.
Extensive research has explored the extent to which North Koreans have been exposed to and influenced by South Korea’s popular media, known as Hallyu (Korean Wave). While much of the existing literature catalogs the devices used to share this forbidden content, Kim’s book goes further by examining the history of digital transformation in North Korea, with more details on the evolution of mobile phones, including the four-year ban on cell phones following the massive explosion at Ryongcheon Station in 2004. The explosion, reportedly triggered by a remote-controlled wireless device, is believed to have been an assassination attempt on Kim Jong-il.
Additionally, whereas prior research often lists the titles of South Korean dramas popular among North Korean viewers, the author—drawing on her expertise in theatre and drama—provides in-depth discussions, to include story outlines of five mega-hits: Autumn in My Heart, Stairway to Heaven, Boys Over Flowers, My Love from Another Star, and Crash Landing on You. Kim also explores the role of mobile technology within these dramas and offers interpretations from the perspective of North Koreans, considering the technological limitations they faced while clandestinely viewing these works.
Some points made by the author resonate with observations from other North Korea experts and defectors, underscoring both their authenticity and significance. For example, the assertion that “the most critical information cannot be exchanged online” (178), but must instead occur offline to evade the state surveillance system, highlights the pervasive state control over digital communication in North Korea. Additionally, the well-known saying among young North Korean defectors: “There are people who have never watched South Korean dramas, but there isn’t anyone who has seen Korean dramas only once” (85) humorously underscores the widespread appeal of South Korean dramas in North Korea. However, this also serves as a reminder that not all North Koreans have been exposed to South Korean content, contradicting possible assumptions about universal access. This, in turn, emphasizes that the limited testimonies of defectors may not fully reflect the experiences of the broader North Korean population (84), even if all 100 defectors interviewed for a specific research project report encountering the Korean Wave while still in North Korea (e.g., Park Jung-Ran and Kang Dong-Wan, “Bukhan jumin-ui namhan midieo suyong-gwa ingwon uisik byeonhwa” [Study on the acceptance of South Korean media and the changing human rights perceptions among North Koreans], Bukhanhak yeongu 9, no. 2 [2013]).
The author notably takes issue with the media piracy prevalent in North Korea, where “unlicensed and illegally copied content” is widely circulated (91). Given North Koreans’ lack of understanding of human rights, the regime’s campaign for intellectual property rights feels misplaced; yet, in time, North Koreans may come to respect creators’ copyrights. Also, they will enjoy the “freedom of mobility” (171) that South Koreans, from celebrities in Grandpas Over Flowers (169) to ordinary citizens, already experience.
North Korea’s technological ambitions and achievements in science and technology (179) are certainly noteworthy. However, these so-called achievements require careful verification, given the secretive and deceitful nature of the Kim regime—where even the population size remains a state secret. It is also important for the outside world to recognize that North Korea is not only unwilling but also unable to supply its populace with basic necessities, such as umbrellas and eyeglasses. The regime’s reliance on joint ventures with foreign firms for producing mobile and high-tech gadgets (34–37) may indicate its inability to produce them independently.
Throughout the book, Kim balances North Koreans’ resourcefulness with the regime’s oppressive control, but highlights at the end that North Koreans’ “attitude towards and conception of cell phones and new technology seems entrenched in the subversion of social norms, if not a full-on open resistance” (179). While making predictions about the future of North Korea is fraught with uncertainty, Kim’s closing remark—that North Korea is “not just a subject of intellectual curiosity but a glimpse into the actual lives of their kin” (181)—is both fitting and poignant. After all, North Korea remains a lived reality for the people within its borders.
For this reason, Kim’s notion of the “Gravity of Nonfictions” (173) is particularly timely. The author well documents North Koreans’ fascination with South Korean media, which often begins with entertainment (i.e., fictional) genres and then expands into nonfictional content (174). The growing demand for South Korean documentaries and the increasing reliance on radio as an affordable and effective “source to quench their curiosity” suggest a promising shift. North Koreans may be gradually moving towards a future grounded in reality rather than one shaped by fictional narratives.
Esther Eui-Gyeong Kim
Yonsei University, Seoul