What North Korean defectors are telling the world on YouTube

Some young North Korean defectors in South Korea are using social media to challenge prejudices.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un greets the crowd during a military parade to mark the 75th founding anniversary of North Korea's army, at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea February 8, 2023
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un greets the crowd during a military parade to mark the 75th founding anniversary of North Korea's army, at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea February 8, 2023 [KCNA/Reuters]

Some young North Korean defectors have taken to social media to challenge misguided prejudices in South Korea, their new home. They are producing “vlogs” for YouTube aimed at educating locals about the realities of life in North Korea. The vlogs have proven popular. Over the last two decades, around 30,000 North Koreans have defected to South Korea for a better life. In this episode, The Take asks if the defectors’ YouTube videos are enough to change mindsets.

In this episode: 

  • Johanna Hoes, (@JohannaHoes), producer/reporter, The Listening Post at Al Jazeera English

Episode credits:

This episode was produced by Ruby Zaman with Amy Walters and Alexandra Locke. The team also includes Chloe K Li, Miranda Lin, Sonia Bhagat, David Enders, Ashish Malhotra, Negin Owliaei, Ney Alvarez, and Khaled Soltan.

Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our lead of audience development and engagement is Aya Elmileik. Munera Al Dosari and Adam Abou-Gad are our engagement producers.

Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer, and Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.

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Source: Al Jazeera