Al Jazeera America, the U.S. branch of the Qatar-funded Al Jazeera, is set to air a special news program offering a behind-the-scenes look at North Korea.
The special will air Monday, which comes just after hostilities between the U.S. and North Korea escalated due to the reclusive country’s hacking of Sony Pictures.
Al Jazeera America correspondent Teresa Bo and her camera crew, however, got their footage for the special before the hacking scandal was first reported in late November.
“Our visit to North Korea was part of a highly controlled press tour sponsored by the government,” Bo said in a release. “Our guides decided where we went, who we spoke to and they were with us at all times.”
The special includes interviews with North Korea government officials and defectors who escaped from the country and fled to neighboring South Korea.
Bo’s entrance was part of a media tour that was otherwise reserved for Spanish media outlets, according to an Al Jazeera America spokeswoman.
The special, “Hidden State: Inside North Korea,” is part of Al Jazeera America’s “Fault Lines” series, which investigates foreign matters and human rights abuses. “Hidden State” airs Monday at 9 p.m. ET on Al Jazeera America.
