U.S. study finds North Korea info controls weakening

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

U.S. study finds North Korea info controls weakening

By Paul Eckert

WASHINGTON | Wed May 9, 2012 7:49pm EDT

(Reuters) - More and more North Koreans are defying strict government controls on access to outside information that starkly contrasts with official propaganda, said a U.S. study released Wednesday.

Avid consumption of South Korean movies and pop music as well as foreign radio and television broadcasts is changing North Korean views of its southern neighbor and even of the United States, a report by the InterMedia consultancy showed.

"In 2012, North Koreans can get more outside information, through more types of media, from more sources, than ever before ? and they are less fearful of sharing that information than ever before," said InterMedia.

The U.S. State Department-commissioned study, "A Quiet Opening: North Koreans in a Changing Media Environment," captures 10 years of research on refugees, travelers and defectors from North Korea, including face-to-face interviews with more than 650 adults in 2010 and 2011.

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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/05/09/us-korea-north-information-idUSBRE8481L020120509