Kim Jong-il’s Photoshopped Funeral Picture

By on January 4, 2012 in News 15

A few stragglers were removed from the right-hand photo, released by the Korean Central News Agency. (Compare the left sides of both pictures.) The chilling thing is, why bother altering the truth over such a minor detail? Do all totalitarian regimes display the symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder, or just North Korea’s? Via TIME Magazine:

The big question is why did the North Koreans alter the image? Aesthetically, the doctored photograph is tad bit cleaner, lines straightened, but hardly improved. Psychologically speaking though, the clone job adds order to an already tidy scene. I’ve been examining photographs released by the KCNA for years and many are strikingly beautiful—enormous, perfectly-positioned crowds, immaculate and intricately composed. Now we may know why.

nkorea

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  • http://twitter.com/edwardjackc Edward Jack

    who gave them photoshop?!

  • Caveman

    Not the same photo… the car has moved further down the avenue.  Look at the placement of guards in conjunction with the location of the lead vehicle in the precession. 

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Nick-Violette/1461947602 Nick Violette

    One for the history books.

    “He was a great leader! Look at how eerily orderly his funeral was!”

  • Juzio

    scam, check the second car, 30 second of delay

  • Weezus Christ

    OMG BRIGHTNESS AND CONSTRAST ADJUSTED! ALERT THE PRESIDENT!

  • Word Eater

    True but I doubt that entire group of people disappeared in the time it took the car to roll 10 feet ahead.

  • Patty

    How are we to know that these are supposed to be the same pictures? I’m not trying to take their side, but even if they did edit their photos, WHO HASN’T? if you’ve used a social networking site, chances are, you’ve edited, cropped, and fixed your photos! Nothing’s wrong with a positive general aesthetic.

  • resonanteye

    perhaps because photographers are perfectionists?
    was this doctored “officially” or did the photographer edit it before release?

  • Cngiles

    These are not the pictures. The one on the left is clearly taken after the one on the right. The led car in the second picture (on the right) before the car with his pic is further down the road than the 1st picture (on the left). Look at the snow line.

  • Anarchy Pony

    The only glaring difference is that a number of people, that weren’t in line with everyone else, on the left edge of the picture aren’t there anymore. And I guess improved clarity.

  • Butter Knife

    The shot on the right *can’t* be an edited version of the photo on the left, because the version on the left is actually a closer crop. Look at the size of the building in the background, it’s pretty obvious.

  • chinagreenelvis

    Congratulations, you’ve just unraveled the world’s most boring conspiracy.

  • Anonymous

    For real. Who gives a fuck if they decided to clean a photo up slightly. Its not like they are hiding a gold pyramid or an alien landing site. 

  • justagirl

    they must have been covering up the conspiracy. zombified lab personnel that escaped.  then they had to murder them.  little murders as they weren’t really living.  just undead.  see the one dragging his leg?

  • http://www.nickmeador.org/ ndmeador

    I think they removed the “stragglers” because, in the most extreme authoritarian regimes in the world, there can be no semblance of personal freedom or independence whatsoever — only a well-oiled machine of cog-automaton-people.