Emotional displays of loyalty to the leader are commonplace on North Korean state TV, from young people thronging around Kim Jong Un with tears in their eyes to public mourning in the aftermath of Kim Jong Il’s death.

But during an unusual segment that aired earlier this week, Korean Central Television (KCTV) showed the DPRK masses in hysterics not for Kim Jong Un but for an ordinary police officer — a striking move that was nonetheless still aimed at fostering loyalty for the regime.

KCTV’s evening bulletin on Sunday told the story of a man named Choe Kum Chol, a