North Korea’s factional divides were hard to read before “Dear Leader” Kim Jong-il died. Now that his son appears to have taken over, Pyongyang is in lockdown mode. No one knows what’s happening in the back rooms that really decide who runs North Korea. But here’s one telling sign: the official mouthpieces are all singing the praises of the Dear Leader’s chubby-cheeked boy, Kim Jong-un.

Not that they’ve quit their day job: mourning Kim Jong-il’s death by churning out over-the-top stories of grief and mourning. But amid the tears and hagiography, the official hacks are ginning up tales of...