Video: Why didn’t US learn of Kim Jong Il’s death earlier?

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   >> shift in north korea , the window it has opened into that repressive and isolated nation, and questions tonight about why the u.s. didn't know more, didn't know sooner about the death of kim jong -il. our chief foreign correspondent andrea mitchell is in our washington newsroom tonight with more on that. andrea, good evening.

   >> reporter: good evening, brian. north korea 's mastery of political theater was on full display today as the kim dynasty tried to convey continuity. and why the u.s. didn't know kim jong -il was dead for two days. the sobbing began on cue, broadcast on state tv with the announcement of kim jong -il's death. a glass coffin for the man known as dear leader . paying his respects, his untested son and heir, kim jong -un. in a choreographed show of relief. battalions of organized mourners appeared on command. an emotional outpouring that reminds some of a cult.

   >> it has both elements of a cult and elements of a mafia. you you have to think of the two of those together. mafia with the personality cult behind it.

   >> their standards of living is inconceivable to the starving millions outside the capital. this satellite image taken just six years ago, illustrates the stark contrast. south korea thriving brightly lit. north korea in mere total darkness. its isolation makes it difficult for american intelligence, which picks up no warning that kim was dead. how is that possible?

   >> you have a government that's fairly compartmentalized. given all of those things, it is a very difficult place to collect accurate and analyze information.

   >> in 2007 , u.s. intelligence didn't know north korea was builds a nuclear reactor in syria. until israel showed the white house pictures and bombed it. two years later, they built a sprawling plant undetected.

   >> he'll need to show something. he needs to show a very skeptical public that he's in charge. and one of the time honored ways that's done in north korea is what we would consider a provocation.

   >> reporter: tonight senior u.s. officials defend the work of the cia saying, the key point is not marking the exact moment the dictator dies but having a solid framework to assess what may come next. that, of course, is the next test.

   >> andrea mitchell on the period of uncertainty that arrived this weekend on the news. andrea,

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