seoul north korea held a conference of its journalists union for the first time since 2001 state media said wednesday as the isolated regime ramps up nuclear threats despite reported food shortagesthe official korean central news agency said the conference took place at a critical time with attendees urged to redouble their efforts to push leader kim jong uns ideological linethe kim family has ruled the country for more than seven decades with an iron fist wrapped in a pervasive personality cult propagated via state mediathe north is regularly rated one of the worst countries in the world in terms of press freedomthe conference held on monday and tuesday in pyongyang was the first time the union has convened since kim was declared leader in 2011it emphasised that journalists should become ardent believers staunch defenders and thorough implementers of the revolutionary idea of kim kcna saidlast year the north declared itself an irreversible nuclear power and kim this year ordered his military to intensify preparations for a real warthe impoverished country has also been struggling to tackle chronic food shortages with some reports of starvation emergingwednesdays kcna report said conference attendees were told a political and ideological campaign must be vigorously launched to inspire the entire country to implement the regimes rural development strategyin north korea journalists are the elite warriors of the partys political propaganda said an chanil a defectorturnedresearcher who runs the world institute for north korea studiesits an order from the regime to write articles that are much more fierce and loyal to kim the fact that the north feels it needs more propaganda may signify that its food situation is not getting any betteran told afp the convention could also suggest another nuclear test was coming perhaps on april 15th the birth anniversary of the norths founder kim il sungthe regime may have wanted to prepare its reporters before the massive coverage of the test