North Korea on Vice

The Future of Japan Is 'Very Dark,' Says Ryu Murakami

Ryu Murakami is one of Japan’s most celebrated and controversial authors. 'From the Fatherland with Love,' published in 2005 and now being translated into English for the first time, envisions a Japan wrecked by complete economic collapse, abandoned by the international community, and on the cusp of being invaded by North Korea. Full story

VICE on HBO Extended

Grocery Shopping for North Korean Defectors

Thousands of North Koreans cross the border illegally into China every year. If they are arrested in communist Laos, there’s the possibility of being sent back to North Korea, where they face prison camps or worse. We recently met up with a South Korean pastor who moves defectors… Full story

VICE on HBO Extended

Escape from North Korea - Hanawon Resettlement Center

Before a defector can officially become a member of South Korean society, he or she must complete a program at the Hanawon Resettlement Center. Thomas Morton sits down with the Director of Education to get a glimpse into the crash course that transforms defector into denizen. Full story

North Korea Has a Friend in Dennis Rodman and VICE

Earlier today former Chicago Bulls superstar Dennis Rodman presided over a mixed-match basketball game in Pyongyang alongside Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un. The teams consisted of VICE correspondent Ryan Duffy, three Harlem Globetrotters, and North Korea's "Dream Team." Full story

North Korea's First Racing Video Game Is Terrible

North Korea has been in the news lately for a very scary reason, but it isn’t every day that Asia’s hermit kingdom releases a car-racing video game. And when they do, you can definitely expect it to be a boring simulation about driving down a pin-straight, barely decorated highwa… Full story

North Korea's Nuclear Warhead Is Reportedly Lighter and More Powerful

North Korea has been on a bit of an aggressive bent lately, and the country just pushed things to a new level by reportedly conducting its third nuclear test. Pyongyang has been expected to conduct a test to follow up on its previous tests in 2006 and 2009, and last night a magni… Full story

They Weren't Joking, North Korea Tested Another Nuclear Bomb

While you were sleeping, North Korea was causing a small earthquake on the Korean peninsula. After a gradual buildup over the past few weeks that's seen domestic media in the socialist state saturated with missile-themed iconography, and timed just a couple of days before the ann… Full story

Question of the Day

Would You Eat a Family Member to Survive?

With stories of starving rural families killing and eating their own children to survive coming out of North Korea over the last couple of weeks, we began to argue over whether it was OK to eat your parents. To answer the question definitely, we asked a bunch of strange Brits. Full story

I Dare North Korea to Nuke America

It's never nice when underage dictators point their nuclear arsenal at you willy-nilly, but try not to panic too much. I don't think North Korea is going to blow up America just yet, or that deep down Kim Jong Un even wants to. Full story

North Korea Smokes Weed Every Day, Explaining a Lot

North Korea, the most tight-lipped, conservative, and controlling country in the world is also a weed-smoker’s paradise. Despite the government’s deadly serious stance on the use and distribution of hard drugs like crystal meth (which has a notorious legacy in the country), marij… Full story