All about Kim Ki Nam: Propagandist who created Kim dynasty's personality cult

NEW DELHI: North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un, rarely seen in public events, on Wednesday paid tributes to propaganda master Kim Ki Nam, who died at the age of 94 due to "multiple organ dysfunction". He is known to have created the cult of personality for the family dynasty that has governed North Korea since its establishment during the Cold War.
Kim Jong Un reportedly, felt “bitter grief over the loss of a veteran revolutionary who had remained boundlessly loyal to the cause of the WPK.”
Kim Ki Nam, who had been in poor health for several years, passed away on Tuesday.He was dubbed by North Korean media as someone, who devoted his life to the “sacred struggle for defending and strengthening the ideological purity of our revolution.”
'Drinking buddies'
Kim Ki Nam, who is not related by blood to the ruling patriarchy, was named deputy director of Pyongyang's Propaganda and Agitation Department in 1966. He is reported to have worked with Kim Jong Il, the predecessor and father of the current leader Kim Jong Un.
Kim Ki Nam had a close relationship with Kim Jong Il, with several media reports describing them as "drinking buddies".
The official biography quoted by media sources said that Kim rose from the hardships of childhood to work at the Central Committee of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea from 1956, earning the trust of state founder Kim Il Sung. He dedicated over 60 years to strengthening the party's ideological base and nurturing skilled individuals to uphold the state.
Kim played a crucial role in shaping the country’s messaging as leadership transitioned to Kim Jong Il, the son of the founder, and contributed to the succession of the current leader Kim Jong Un, the grandson.
“Kim Ki Nam was an elite career propagandist all his life, starting in the 1960s,” BBC quoted Rachel Minyoung Lee, a senior fellow with the 38 North Program at the Stimson Center in the US and also someone, who worked as an analyst for the CIA’s Open Source Enterprise for almost two decades.
“Kim Jong Un also trusted and relied on this propaganda veteran from his grandfather’s, and subsequently his father’s time, by keeping him in key propaganda positions for years before he retired from the propaganda scene in early 2019,” said Lee.
Kim Ki Nam held the position of party secretary in the Information and Publicity Department, which is also referred to as the propaganda and agitation department. In 1976, he was appointed as the editor-in-chief of the state's primary newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, and later assumed the role of chairman of the country's journalist association.
"North Korean Goebbels"
South Korea has likened him to Nazi Germany's propaganda boss Joseph Goebbels, widely known for his mantra "repeat a lie often enough and it becomes the truth".
Field visits were regularly featured in state propaganda, depicting the leader inspecting farms, factories, and construction projects. This strategy shifted the blame for economic mismanagement away from the Kim family, who were depicted as deeply attentive to the state's smallest details, and instead placed it on cadres who failed to execute the leaders' orders.
Kim Ki Nam has also gained recognition internationally. He headed a group to South Korea following the passing of former President Kim Dae-jung in 2009 and had a meeting with the then South Korean President Lee Myung-bak. Kim Dae-jung undertook a significant trip to Pyongyang in 2000 to meet Kim Jong Il, which raised hopes for the reconciliation of the divided peninsula.
The last time Kim Ki Nam was mentioned in state media for a public appearance was in 2021. He was standing on a platform with prominent officials, observing a parade of paramilitary forces to commemorate the 73rd anniversary of the country’s founding.
This year, the current leader Kim Jong Un has decided to remove the notion of peaceful reunification from the country's constitution and has dismantled monuments established by his father and grandfather that were dedicated to the idea of a unified peninsula. This has raised concerns that the current leader may be preparing for war, with worries increasing as Kim Jong Un strengthens his nuclear weapons stockpile and disregards calls from the US to resume negotiations.
“Kim Ki Nam is considered one of the most important figures in North Korea propaganda,” bloomberg quoted Cheong Seong-chang, a researcher at the Sejong Institute.
( with inputs from Bloomberg, BBC, AP)