How are media outlets reporting on the escalating war of words between US President Trump and North Korea’s Kim Jong-un?
For the past few months, the leaders of North Korea and the United States have been goading each other, in a war of words over the possibility of a nuclear war.
With each missile test, each nuclear test conducted by Pyongyang, US President Donald Trump has responded with aggressive rhetoric, usually delivered in 140 characters or less.
The United Nations General Assembly got a taste of that rhetoric last week when Trump threatened to « totally destroy North Korea » if the US is « forced to defend itself or its allies ».
As the US media have learned, striking the right tone – and not being alarmist over this kind of story – is editorially challenging.
Sometimes, news outlets aiming for brevity, shorthand their way to inaccuracy and sensationalism.
In July, the head of the CIA suggested Washington could be considering options to remove Kim Jong-un. Pyongyang replied saying it would « strike the US with a powerful nuclear hammer if the United States tried regime change. »
The shorthand version in a headline in US magazine Newsweek left out the second half of the North Korean statement.
« I think there’s a huge double standard when it comes to threats that are imposed by North Korea and US threats because North Korea is seen as the axis of evil, the communist state … whereas the US is seen within the paradigm of democracy and freedom and rationality, » says Haeryun Kang, managing editor of Korea Expose.
North Korea is one of the most isolated countries in the world. There are just two foreign news bureaus – of the news agencies AP and AFP – in Pyongyang. That lack of access to what’s really going on creates suspicion and ultimately feeds the rumour mill.
