A documentary series about North Korea produced by Shanghai Media Group has drawn the ire of Pyongyang, whose complaints to authorities in Beijing have landed the group's management in hot water.
Executives and senior producers from the media group, the second largest in the country behind China Central Television, were subjected to a tongue-lashing and there are concerns among staff that heads will roll, people familiar with the situation told the South China Morning Post.
Editorial staff from different branches of SMG, which has radio, television and newspaper operations, have been required to attend special sessions and reflect on the alleged political missteps made by the production team of Direct Insight into North Korea.
The series was screened on SMG's documentary channel from July 20 to 24. It was made over 10 days in North Korea in June and authorised by the country's broadcasting authorities. The SMG documentary channel is available to viewers in Shanghai only.
North Korean officials accused SMG of presenting the country in a bad light and complained to the central government, three people who have been briefed on the matter said.
It is not known which dialogue or footage offended the North Koreans. 'We were told ... the troubles arose from the content in the final three episodes,' one of the sources said.
These episodes were titled Leaders' Embrace, The Fight of 150 Days and The Mysterious Sun of the Kims, according to a preview of the show in the July 20 edition of Shanghai's Oriental Morning Post. The titles suggest content related to North Korean leader Kim Jong-il; '150 Days' relates to a recently launched campaign to encourage the North Korean people to work harder, which was seen by observers as an attempt to increase national pride in the run-up to an expected succession of power.
