(Image source: Reproduction / Sophie Schmidt)

Eric Schmidt, Google's chairman, has attracted a lot of media attention thanks to a carefully crafted post about his visit to North Korea in which he gives his opinion on the government's control over what the population can or cannot do. cannot access over the internet.

According to Eric, internet use is supervised - people can only access the network when someone is watching - and only the government, the army and universities have access to it. However, it is a private intranet, and the information circulating through it is surely manipulated by the state.

Google's president believes the decision to keep North Korea virtually isolated in an increasingly connected world will have major consequences for the country's development and economic growth. However, a publication by Sophie Schmidt, Eric's daughter and a member of the delegation who visited the Asian country, is giving the talk. And not because she was as measured as her father in giving her opinion.

Real-life Truman Show

(Image source: Reproduction / Sophie Schmidt)

Sophie released the verb, describing the trip to North Korea as a very - very - strange experience, and the situation experienced by the North Koreans as a real-life version of the Truman Show but on a much larger scale. . According to Sophie, the visit was a mix of rehearsed meetings and orchestrated visits, without any interaction with people who had not previously been approved by the state.

An example was the delegation's visit to the library of one of the universities, during which hundreds of students at their computers simply seemed to be sitting there, doing nothing or showing the slightest reaction. With a few rare clicks, the vast majority just stared at the screen, and the scariest thing was that none of these people exchanged a look or made any sign of appreciation of the visitors, acting as if they were dolls or dummies.

Bubble

(Image source: Reproduction / Sophie Schmidt)

Sophie says the population is hostage to her own government and is not even aware of it, as she is taught to believe she is very lucky to reside in that country. In addition, the people live in a kind of “anti-information” bubble that keeps them almost completely isolated. None of the members of the delegation brought computers or cell phones to visit, as they were told that such equipment would be confiscated.

But in addition to not being able to bring their electronics to the country, the delegation was also advised to be attentive to eavesdropping, planted everywhere. And Sophie even gives tips for those who want to venture out and visit North Korea someday: if you have a chance to go, go, but get ready for a very, very strange trip, as nothing you've read or seen before about that country can prepare you for reality.