Joson Inmingun

Joson Inmingun, meaning Korean People’s Army, is the military newspaper of the Korean People’s Army. First published on 10 July 1948, it is a Korean-language daily produced for the armed forces and based in Pyongyang. It has historically been regarded as one of North Korea’s most politically authoritative newspapers, alongside Rodong Sinmun.

Media assets

Newspaper: Joson Inmingun, published in Korean. South Korean specialist material records its format, page structure and editorial style as broadly similar to Rodong Sinmun, and locates the newspaper office in Songyo District, Pyongyang

Distribution is principally internal to the armed forces. South Korean specialist sources describe it as a restricted military publication rather than a newspaper available for ordinary civilian subscription, with subscription limited to Korean People’s Army units.

Ownership and governance

Joson Inmingun is the Korean People’s Army’s military newspaper. It was founded as the organ of the Ministry of National Defence, and after Party organisations were established inside the army in 1950 publishing responsibility shifted to the General Political Bureau. Recent South Korean scholarship describes it as having operated from October 1950 to the present as the General Political Bureau’s organ. Other reference material describes it more generally as the organ of the Korean People’s Army Supreme Command.

The General Political Bureau is the body responsible for Party political and ideological work throughout the armed forces.

Its principal function is political and ideological education within the armed forces, alongside coverage of military policy, training, directives and KPA activity.

Standing among North Korean newspapers

Joson Inmingun has historically held an unusually authoritative position within North Korea’s press. From 1995 to 2012 it joined Rodong Sinmun and the youth league newspaper Chongnyon Jonwi in publishing the country’s joint New Year editorials.

Specialist literature commonly places Rodong Sinmun and Joson Inmingun among North Korea’s most politically significant newspapers, although there is no formal contemporary ranking of the country’s principal publications.

Source of funding and budget

North Korea publishes no disaggregated budget data, and State Media Monitor identified no financial statements, revenue figures or appropriations for Joson Inmingun.

Its institutional status within the KPA’s political apparatus indicates military and state support, but no public accounts establish the composition or proportion of its funding, and State Media Monitor does not quantify the funding condition.

Editorial independence

Joson Inmingun has no identifiable editorial independence from the military and Party structures within which it operates.

North Korea permits no independent domestic journalism. Reporters Without Borders records that the regime strictly prohibits independent journalism, tightly controls the production and distribution of information, and permits the Korean Central News Agency as the only authorised news source for North Korean media. Human Rights Watch’s 2026 reporting states that the government tightly controls all media and that distribution of illegal foreign media content can be punishable by death.

AI and digital policy

State Media Monitor identified no publicly accessible Joson Inmingun policy governing the use of artificial intelligence, and no publicly accessible North Korean rule requiring news organisations to disclose AI-generated content. The opacity of North Korean legislation and internal regulation means these are search findings rather than assertions of non-existence.

Classification rationale

Joson Inmingun remains classified State-Controlled Media (SC).

It is state and military-controlled and governed. Joson Inmingun is an institutional organ of the Korean People’s Army’s political apparatus, with recent scholarship identifying it as an organ of the General Political Bureau. The KPA is an armed institution of the DPRK state and operates under Workers’ Party political control. State Media Monitor identified no governing or appointment structure insulating the newspaper from either the military or the Party.

Its editorial agenda is institutionally subordinate to the military’s Party-political apparatus. The General Political Bureau supervises political and ideological work throughout the armed forces, and the newspaper’s principal function is political and ideological education within them.

Its funding is not disclosed. No budget, accounts or appropriations are published. Its institutional status within the KPA’s political apparatus indicates military and state support, but no public accounts establish the composition or proportion, and State Media Monitor does not quantify the funding condition.

August 2026