June 03, 2023
Features

Disappearing act: North Korea digitally scrubs lead actor from popular TV series

Digital recasting of Choe Ung Chol after 20 years may have been triggered by romantic escapades and political missteps

North Korea can often look like a regular country. It can make good films and write nice music, its leader can behave like a doting father and supportive husband, and commuters go about their lives on the Pyongyang metro. 

But when the regime perceives somebody as an enemy, they will relentlessly hunt down and destroy this threat, squashing out any hint that they ever existed.