Ri Chun-Hee, Kim Jong-Un’s Trusted News Anchor, Brought Out Of Retirement To Announce Hydrogen Bomb Tests
Kim Jong-Un unleashed his trusted news anchor Ri Chun-Hee to announce that North Korea had successfully tested a hydrogen bomb. Ri Chun-Hee appears to be the only woman that the North Korean dictator will trust with important propaganda statements, and despite her apparent move to retirement, she was brought out to announce the bomb’s success.
The Daily Mail reports that North Korean news anchor Ri Chun-Hee came out of purported retirement to make a big announcement for the dictator Kim Jong-Un. The news anchor donned her trademark chima jeogori as she made the announcement. During the annoucement, Chun-Hee appeared in good spirits as she cheerfully announced that North Korea had successfully tested a hydrogen bomb on January 6, 2016.
“The first H-bomb test was successfully conducted at 10am on January 6, 2016.”
However, the hydrogen bomb test success wasn’t the only message that Kim Jong-Un had Ri Chun-Hee deliver. In a second message by Chun-Hee, she explained that North Korea had no intention of halting their nuclear program or hydrogen bomb testing while the United States of America continued to have a “stance of aggression” towards the region.
“We will not give up a nuclear programme as long as the United States maintains its stance of aggression.”
According to CNN, anytime there is significant news or important propaganda statements needing to be made in North Korea, Ri Chun-Hee is the woman to deliver the message. It may be Chun-Hee’s apparent passion for the news that landed her the spot as head news anchor for Kim Jong-Un. The woman in traditional North Korean dress is a mainstay in the North Korean media, always there to deliver the most important messages from the country’s dictator. From announcing the country’s first successful hydrogen bomb test to the deaths of previous leaders Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-il, Chun-Hee is the woman charged with making the important announcement.
Ri Chun-hee The Only Woman North Korea Trusts To Deliver Most Important Propaganda!! https://t.co/i6BUrhvAre
— News World (@TheNewsWorld2) January 7, 2016
In fact, Chun-Hee, who originally trained as an actress, has been a news anchor for over 40 years. The trusted anchor began her career as a North Korean news anchor in 1971 and has remained a trusted spokesperson for the country’s only news station since. Ri Chun-Hee is known in North Korea as the “people’s broadcaster” and has frequented the air for all major announcements in the country. When viewers see the woman take center stage, they know important news from dictator Kim Jong-Un is on the way.
OMG IT WAS RI CHUN-HEE! https://t.co/nzu8DNQSpn https://t.co/H2LWK2LgYs
— Esther Wang (@estherxlwang) January 6, 2016
Her emotional reports are what set her apart from other North Korean anchors. She can perform a variety of emotions from joy to sorrow while still revealing the message at hand. It should come as no surprise that the prized news anchor got her start as an actress.
However, in 2012 at the age of 69, Ri Chun-Hee announced that she would go into semi-retirement as she took a backseat to younger, more beautiful female news anchors.
“Many anchor women now are very young and beautiful. And far more suitable to appear before the viewers.”
Despite her attempt to take a backseat, it appears that Kim Jong-Un wasn’t ready to let her go. With the announcement of the hydrogen bomb testing, the dictator only trusted Chun-Hee with the big reveal. Brian Myers, North Korean propaganda analyst, says that the reason that Chun-Hee is so beloved by Kim Jong-Un is her ability to produce a voice laden with “hate and scorn” when discussing grave issues.
“It’s a hate filled voice. It kind of reminds me of what George Orwell was talking about in 1984, when he talked about the two-minute hate. It’s a voice just laden with scorn and hate.”
What do you think about the big announcement by Ri Chun-Hee that North Korea has successfully tested a hydrogen bomb? Should the United States be worried?
[Image via AP]
