BBC Host Katty Kay indignantly denied the media's overwhelmingly friendly coverage of North Korean Dictator Kim Jong-un’s sister, Kim Yo-jong, calling it “insulting” to suggest that the media had fallen for the North Korean official.
During a Monday segment on MSNBC’s Morning Joe, David Ignatius of The Washington Post marveled at the effect Kim Yo-jong had had on America’s media and referred to her presence at the Olympics as “lipstick diplomacy.” Kay bristled at Ignatius’s premise, insisting that nobody was defending North Korea. “I think it’s erroneous to suggest that anybody is supporting Kim Jong-un’s sister,” she protested.
The media’s surprisingly favorable reaction to Kim Yo-jong has been well-documented; CNN claimed she was “stealing the show” and described her as North Korea’s “charm offensive.” An NPR piece admitted that she had “captivated media attention and fascinated the public.” And The Washington Post dubbed her the “Ivanka Trump of North Korea,” absurdly praising her as “a political princess.”
Even NBC’s Willie Geist, a consistent regular on Morning Joe, complained in a tweet that “some media” seemed “enthralled with Kim Yo-jong.” Nevertheless, Kay continued to deny. “That’s kind of insulting to say, ‘Oh, well people are being duped by this woman coming across,’”she complained.
But in the next breath, Kay attacked Vice President Mike Pence for being too hard on North Korea, alleging that he was “playing into the North Korean playbook.”
But when the Vice President doesn’t stand for the joint Korean team walking into the Olympic stadium, is that seen as heavy-handedness on the part of the United States?
Host Joe Scarborough agreed and described Pence’s decision not to give the Korean athletes a standing ovation as “a clumsy moment.” He went on to lament that the lack of State Department officials who could babysit the President and Vice President to ensure “that they don’t embarrass themselves.”
