Recommended Readings: North Korea

Starting with this month’s event, “What’s Up With North Korea?” we are trying something new at Civic Series. In the spirit of Ethan Zuckerman’s call for more “wide news” — news that reflects society’s diversity of opinions — we will be sending out some recommended readings that cut across the spectrum.  Our hope is to expand this practice to cut across multiple perspectives (beyond just left-right), but for this week, we have a few suggested starting points.

With such a complex topic as North Korea, it’s difficult to cover even a segment of the country’s history or recent actions, so please understand that these are by no means thorough.  These articles are merely meant as a place to begin our conversation, as well as a way of showcasing some of the varying conversations already happening. Articles with an * next to them indicate the most essential piece per section:

Left-leaning author and/or publication:

*The North Korean Nuclear Threat, Explained, Vox

This is What’s Really Behind North Korea’s Nuclear Provocations, The Nation

Centrist:

Korean Conflict: What’s Happening, and what Could Happen Next, The Globe and Mail

*North Korea Profile – A Timeline, BBC

The View from the Chinese Border with North Korea, NPR

Preventing Nuclear War with North Korea, Foreign Affairs

Right-leaning author and/or publication:

What Would Happen if Kim Jong-Un Launched a Nuclear Strike?, The Daily Caller

*We Can Defang the North Korean Threat, National Review

Feedback on this new feature are certainly welcome — please reach out via Twitter if you have thoughts!

– Adam Gismondi, Ph.D.
Civic Media Researcher for Civic Series
@AdamGismondi

Plus, Recent Articles Authored by the Speaker

• In the New York Times, May 2017,  Prof. Sung-Yoon Lee asks, why do we appease North Korea?
• In Foreign Affairs, May-June 2017, Prof. Sung-Yoon Lee et al assert that denuclearizing North Korea requires “an unrelenting campaign of political subversion and financial isolation.”