Jean joins The Conversation host Catherine Cruz on Hawai’i Public Radio to discuss political uncertainty in South Korea and the latest crypto heist pinned on North Korean hackers.
The East-West Center announces the appointment of Jean H. Lee as the Center’s inaugural Presidential Chair.
Jean speaks to Juana Summers, host of NPR’s All Things Considered, to discuss latest developments in South Korea’s ongoing political crisis.
Jean joins Katie Phang on MSNBC to discuss the political turmoil in South Korea following President Yoon Suk Yeol’s short-lived declaration of martial law.
Jean speaks to BBC’s Newshour program after South Korea’s president reverses course after declaring martial law in a tumultuous night of political upheaval in Seoul.
Jean speaks to the New York Times about the political upheaval in Seoul after President Yoon Suk Yeol declares martial law.
Jean is quoted in a Nov. 4, 2024, Wall Street Journal story featuring analysis of Kim Jong Un’s risky embrace of Russia.
Jean joins Julie Mason on The Julie Mason Show on SiriusXM to discuss what to make of reports that North Korea is sending troops to Ukraine to fight with Russia.
Jean joins Julian Worricker on BBC Radio4’s The World Tonight radio show on Oct. 23, 2024, to discuss reports that Washington has seen evidence 3,000 North Korean troops are training in Russia and may be sent to fight in Ukraine.
Jean joins the BBC World Service’s Newshour program on Oct. 23, 2024, to discuss news that the US and South Korea have said that about 3,000 troops from North Korea are in Russia, raising concerns that they may fight in Russia war in Ukraine.
Jean speaks to Rob Schmitz on NPR’s All Things Considered about the relationship between Russia and North Korea.
From Hollywood hacks to billion-dollar heists, North Korea is rewriting the rules of cyber warfare. Learn all about the regime's elite hackers with Jean Lee.
Jean joins CNN’s Erin Burnett and investigative journalist Christo Grozev for CNN’s Erin Burnett OutFront to discuss President Vladimir Putin’s trip to Pyongyang.
The war in Ukraine has shifted the balance of power between Moscow, Pyongyang, and Beijing. As the geopolitical landscape evolves, new alliances and meetings come into focus. After Vladimir Putin's visit to China in May, there are now reports of an imminent meeting between the Russian President and Kim Jong Un. The North Korean leader has recently hailed his country's ties with Russia, saying the two nations are "invincible comrades-in-arms."
Katya speaks to the host of the BBC’s Lazarus Heist podcast, Jean Lee, and the Financial Times’ Seoul bureau chief, Christian Davies. They discuss what North Korea's end game is and how worried the rest of the world should be.
She's probably the most powerful woman in North Korea: Kim Yo Jong, the dictator’s younger sister. She’s viewed as an emotionless and shrewd strategist for her brother, the North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un. But just who is the "Red Princess"?
Jean joins The Conversation host Catherine Cruz on Hawai’i Public Radio to discuss political uncertainty in South Korea and the latest crypto heist pinned on North Korean hackers.
The East-West Center announces the appointment of Jean H. Lee as the Center’s inaugural Presidential Chair.
Jean speaks to Juana Summers, host of NPR’s All Things Considered, to discuss latest developments in South Korea’s ongoing political crisis.
Jean joins Katie Phang on MSNBC to discuss the political turmoil in South Korea following President Yoon Suk Yeol’s short-lived declaration of martial law.
Jean speaks to BBC’s Newshour program after South Korea’s president reverses course after declaring martial law in a tumultuous night of political upheaval in Seoul.
Jean speaks to the New York Times about the political upheaval in Seoul after President Yoon Suk Yeol declares martial law.
Jean is quoted in a Nov. 4, 2024, Wall Street Journal story featuring analysis of Kim Jong Un’s risky embrace of Russia.
Jean joins Julie Mason on The Julie Mason Show on SiriusXM to discuss what to make of reports that North Korea is sending troops to Ukraine to fight with Russia.
Jean joins Julian Worricker on BBC Radio4’s The World Tonight radio show on Oct. 23, 2024, to discuss reports that Washington has seen evidence 3,000 North Korean troops are training in Russia and may be sent to fight in Ukraine.
Jean joins the BBC World Service’s Newshour program on Oct. 23, 2024, to discuss news that the US and South Korea have said that about 3,000 troops from North Korea are in Russia, raising concerns that they may fight in Russia war in Ukraine.
Jean speaks to Rob Schmitz on NPR’s All Things Considered about the relationship between Russia and North Korea.
The North’s participation in these Games signalled a “remarkable” return to the international fold, suggested Jean H Lee, a former Associated Press journalist who opened the US news agency’s first bureau in the North Korean capital, Pyongyang.
From Hollywood hacks to billion-dollar heists, North Korea is rewriting the rules of cyber warfare. Learn all about the regime's elite hackers with Jean Lee.
Jean joins CNN’s Erin Burnett and investigative journalist Christo Grozev for CNN’s Erin Burnett OutFront to discuss President Vladimir Putin’s trip to Pyongyang.
The war in Ukraine has shifted the balance of power between Moscow, Pyongyang, and Beijing. As the geopolitical landscape evolves, new alliances and meetings come into focus. After Vladimir Putin's visit to China in May, there are now reports of an imminent meeting between the Russian President and Kim Jong Un. The North Korean leader has recently hailed his country's ties with Russia, saying the two nations are "invincible comrades-in-arms."
Katya speaks to the host of the BBC’s Lazarus Heist podcast, Jean Lee, and the Financial Times’ Seoul bureau chief, Christian Davies. They discuss what North Korea's end game is and how worried the rest of the world should be.
Jean speaks to William Gallo of the Voice of America about North Korea’s campaign to send balloons filled with garbage across the DMZ to South Korea.
“The statements and policy changes are part of a broader strategy to destabilize and create anxiety,” said Jean H. Lee, a fellow at the East-West Center in Honolulu.
Others caution that the latest shift is likely part of a familiar playbook for North Korea. “Given the political landscape, North Korea is looking for new and novel ways to ramp up tensions,” said Jean H. Lee, a visiting fellow at the East-West Center, a Honolulu-based think tank. “Calling South Korea Enemy No. 1 is a tactic Kim Jong Un may hope will spark some anxiety in the region and unease among South Koreans.”
One of 2017's defining geopolitical slugfests was between heavyweight personalities President Donald Trump and North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un.
It was an international standoff that descended into personal name-calling, with Trump labeling Kim "little rocket man" and the U.S. president being described as an "old lunatic" and a "dotard" in return.
If the past year were one round in a boxing match, most analysts say there's only one winner.
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Leading experts on North Korea discuss the challenges surrounding North Korea's nuclear and missile capabilities. What does North Korea want, and what leverage does the U.S. have? How close to nuclear war are we?
Read MoreIt's hard to know what exactly is going on in North Korea, but it is possible to get glimpses. Seasoned North Korea observer Jean Lee has looked at the evolution of television soap operas in the era of Kim Jong-Un. What gave her the idea?
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North Korean state media is often known for its bombast and fiery rhetoric. But spend some time watching North Korea’s televised dramas and soap operas, and you may be surprised to see that the country acknowledges some of its weaknesses, too.
Read MoreA group of women gossiping about the new neighbor. A feisty middle schooler using a homemade drone to prank his classmates. A young military officer seeking information from his past. These themes could be from any American TV show. But they are, in fact, storylines from a new wave of soap operas produced by the North Korean state.
Former AP journalist Jean Lee, now a Global Fellow at The Wilson Center, analyzed four of these North Korean soaps for a new research paper commissioned by KEI. In this episode of Korean Kontext, she discusses some of her observations, including a shift from emphasizing military service to emphasizing family ties and a focus on youth and the next generation of North Koreans - themes which may indicate some of Kim Jong-un's main domestic priorities
Read MoreThis is the new face of propaganda in North Korea, says Jean Lee, a global fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. It’s softer and more subtle than the nightly news broadcasts, and more entertaining too, she said. “[North Koreans] are much more inclined to pay attention because they’re enjoying it.”
Read MoreThe Korea Economic Institute of America published today a new analysis by Jean Lee, a journalist and veteran North Korea watcher who opened the AP’s Pyongyang bureau, focused on how North Korean soap operas can shed light on Kim Jong Un’s policy priorities. For her study, Lee analyzed four North Korean TV dramas that aired from 2013 to 2016. She used the dramas to tease out details of what these dramas can tell us about North Korean thinking, and what the regime wants the general populace to focus on in their daily lives. Things like clothing choices, apartment decorations, and career choices that are seen in the dramas shed light on how Kim Jong Un sets domestic priorities in North Korea.
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