NBC and CNN are currently running stories that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has slipped into a coma following complications from cardiovascular surgery and is in “grave danger.” NBC went one step further, saying, in a tweet, that he may be brain dead. I’ll not argue that point and the tweet itself has since been deleted. It is important to note, though that the story is originating from intelligence sources monitoring North Korea. That seems to be a rather tenuous source to be scooping the media on such an important event potentially.
As if by magic, Yonhap News Agency in South Korea has quoted a South Korean Government source, as saying they have seen no unusual signs concerning Kim Jong-un’s health. One or more tier-1 news organizations are about to get egg on their face, and or face a harsh lesson in the perils of reporting by social media, without adequately verifying stories. I am just not sure which it will be.
Financial markets are refusing to get whipsawed…
