I’ve met foreign leaders who can’t go out and say this publicly, but boy they look at you and say, ‘You’ve got to win this, you’ve got to beat this guy, we need a new policy,’ things like that.

— John Kerry

SEOUL — North Korea’s state-controlled media is known for its reverential reporting on Mr Kim Jong-il.

But the Dear Leader is not the only one getting deferential treatment: Mr John Kerry, the presumptive Democratic candidate in the United States, is also getting good play in Pyongyang.

His speeches are being broadcast on Radio Pyongyang and reported in glowing terms by the Korea Central News Agency (KCNA).

— “Kerry gets dream run in North Korean media”, The Straits Times