Here's an excerpt from an article in CNN:
Two U.S. journalists who had been detained by North Korea were traveling back to the United States with former President Clinton hours after being pardoned, a Clinton spokesman said.
"They are en route to Los Angeles [California] where Laura and Euna will be reunited with their families," said spokesman Matt McKenna.
Doug Ling, Laura's father, reacted to the news outside his home in Carmichael, California, with, "One of the best days in my life ... I figured, sooner or later, they'd be back."
In Los Angeles, family friend Welly Yang said the Ling family had "done everything they could, while respecting the North Korean government, to try and get Laura home."
He predicted that Ling would remain a journalist. "Despite this terrifying experience, I can't imagine that Laura would give up her passion to tell stories that otherwise wouldn't be heard."
Their release Wednesday came after Clinton met with top government officials in Pyongyang.
"Clinton expressed words of sincere apology to Kim Jong Il for the hostile acts committed by the two American journalists against the DPRK after illegally intruding into it," the news agency reported. "Clinton courteously conveyed to Kim Jong Il an earnest request of the U.S. government to leniently pardon them and send them back home from a humanitarian point of view.
"The meetings had candid and in-depth discussions on the pending issues between the DPRK and the U.S. in a sincere atmosphere and reached a consensus of views on seeking a negotiated settlement of them." Video Watch Ling's father welcome his daughter's pardon »
The report said Clinton then conveyed a message from President Obama "expressing profound thanks for this and reflecting views on ways of improving the relations between the two countries."
But White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters in Washington before the announced agreement that Clinton was not carrying any message -- written or oral -- from Obama.
Gibbs added that the former president last spoke with Obama during a White House visit in March. He described Clinton's trip as a "solely private mission to secure the release of two Americans."
The report from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the nation's official name, described the agreement to release the journalists as "a manifestation of the DPRK's humanitarian and peace-loving policy.
"The DPRK visit of Clinton and his party will contribute to deepening the understanding between the DPRK and the U.S. and building the bilateral confidence."
Ling and Lee are reporters for California-based Current TV -- a media venture launched by Clinton's former vice president, Al Gore.
The women were arrested in March while reporting from the border between North Korea and China for California-based Current Media and sentenced in June to 12 years in prison on charges of entering the country illegally to conduct a smear campaign. Because the United States has no diplomatic relations with North Korea, efforts to resolve the issue had been handled through Sweden, which represents U.S. interests in Pyongyang.
So, did the United States take the correct action by negotiating the pardoning of those two journalists? Please answer poll above and feel free to debate the topic and post your opinion.
