North Korea had engaged in whaling for several decades until the 1980s, impacting whale resources in East Asian waters. However, few studies have attempted to examine the economic and political relationships that North Korea has built with whale resources. In this respect, this study conducted a content analysis of North Korean newspapers to explore the changing utilization patterns of whale resources in North Korea. Analyzing 138 articles spanning from 1957 to 2021, we found that North Korea engaged in whaling between the 1950s and the early 1970s. While relevant articles did not appear between 1974 and 1999, they began to reappear after 2000 with different focal points compared to the earlier period. Specifically, recent articles no longer document North Korea’s past whaling records. Instead, they emphasize whales as part of the global commons, criticize Japan for its continued whaling activities, and advocate for sustainable whale management and conservation. Research findings call for more attention to be paid to examining North Korea’s role in shaping the past, present, and future of whale resources in East Asia. Furthermore, North Korea’s recent realignment towards advocating whale conservation suggests that whales could serve as an effective platform for maritime cooperation with other concerned countries.