‘Everything Could Change Very Quickly’: CNN’s Will Ripley Tells Mediaite About Reporting From North Korea
There are few places shrouded in greater mystery than North Korea.
The reclusive, Stalinist dictatorship has sat at the nexus of global affairs for nearly 70 years. Today, its rapidly expanding nuclear capabilities has arguably brought the United States closer to conflict on the Korean peninsula than at any point since the end of the Korean War.
In this swirling miasma of events is a boyish CNN international reporter: Will Ripley.
“I am one sentence away, one story away, one feature away from being in real trouble,” the CNN correspondent told Mediaite in an exclusive interview from Pyongyang. “That’s just how it works here.”
Ripley knows better than most. During some of the most intense saber rattling between the United States and North Korea, he stood alone as the only foreign journalist reporting from Pyongyang. His reportage ran the gamut from high stakes nuclear brinksmanship to emotional features on ordinary North Koreans, to just plain weird.
Didn’t make it to the annual Pyongyang Marathon? Will Ripley did.
Hundreds of foreigners are in the North Korean capital for the annual Pyongyang marathon, as tensions escalate between the DPRK & the U.S. pic.twitter.com/C5GpPcoAut
— Will Ripley (@willripleyCNN) April 9, 2017
During one instance of just how tense the situation on the ground can be, Ripley recalled the detention of BBC reporter Rupert Wingfield-Hayes who was held for 10 hours and forced to apologize to “the relevant organs” for his reporting. Wingfield-Hayes later documented his ordeal for the BBC.
“They chose me to cover the announcement that he was detained,” said Ripley. “It was a reminder that it was a possibility, being an American journalist particularly at this time.”
Ripley, however, said he was generally unruffled about reporting from the country, noting that the trust and relationships he has built up over time have made his day-to-day experience better. He also spoke glowingly of the ordinary people he met.
“They’re wonderful people. They smile. Sometimes there’s a little bit of shock,” he said, adding that he particularly enjoyed working out in his hotel gym because it gave him a chance to speak with students from the elite Kim Il-Sung University.
“It’s interesting to chat with them,” said Ripley. “People are curious.”
Ripley spoke with Mediaite shortly before heading to Pyongyang International Airport for an Air Koryo flight to Beijing and then ultimately Japan. While his most recent tour in the Hermit Kingdom is over, we are excited for what the future holds for the talented Mr. Ripley.
[image via CNN]
