NIS Blocks 'Buk Seonjeon YouTube'... "Countering Anti-South Psychological Warfare"

Vlogging North Korean YouTuber Channels Disappear
Broadcasting Commission Decides to Block on 5th at NIS Request
"Consistent Removal of North Korean Regime Propaganda According to Relevant Laws"

YouTube channels used for North Korean regime propaganda featuring young women and girls such as 'Song-a', 'Yumi', and 'Yeonmi' have been simultaneously blocked in South Korea at the request of the National Intelligence Service (NIS).

An NIS official stated on the 23rd, "We have been continuously taking down YouTube accounts that promote the North Korean regime in accordance with the Information and Communications Network Act and the National Security Act." He added, "YouTube channels presumed to be operated by North Korean authorities are part of North Korea's psychological warfare against South Korea," and emphasized, "Countering psychological warfare against the South is the NIS's responsibility."

Introducing spring fashion of Pyongyang women by North Korean YouTuber Yeonmi
Photo by YouTube 'NEW DPRK'

The Korea Communications Standards Commission, following the NIS's request, resolved on the 5th to block access to the problematic YouTube channels. The channels requested for blocking by the NIS include three representative channels promoting the North Korean regime: ▲Song-a (Sally Parks) ▲Yumi (Olivia Natasha · Yumi Space DPRK Daily) ▲NEW DPRK.

Currently, when accessing these channels domestically, a message stating "This channel is not available" is displayed. However, since individual videos still appear when searching by channel name, it seems that complete blocking at the YouTube level has not been achieved.

These channels featured young women or girls introducing aspects of North Korean society in English. However, there have been criticisms that the content shows hobbies and recreational facilities enjoyed only by a privileged few, creating a disconnect from the lives of ordinary citizens. Although they claim to reveal the 'daily life' of North Korean residents, experts analyze that these are 'regime propaganda campaigns' devised under the direction of North Korean high-ranking officials.

In the past, YouTube channels promoting the North Korean regime have been blocked, but most were removed by Google itself under its content policies due to insults and slanders against the South Korean government. It is unusual for intelligence authorities to intervene directly in blocking. Unlike previous channels that caused discomfort, the channels blocked this time attracted tens of thousands of subscribers by featuring young women prominently.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.