CNN Highlights North Korean Defector and YouTuber 'Kang Nara'

"Recording Daily Life for Those Who Like Me Through Broadcasting"

[Asia Economy Reporter Bang Je-il] As the number of North Korean defectors who risked their lives to escape and are now active as YouTube stars in South Korea gradually increases, CNN highlighted North Korean defector YouTuber Kang Nara (26) on the 4th (local time).

North Korean defector YouTuber Kang Nara was born in 1997 in Chongjin, North Hamgyong Province, and defected in 2014 during her teenage years. She currently has 350,000 subscribers on YouTube. Her personal Instagram has 130,000 followers, and she also posts advertisements for various brands including Chanel and Puma. In August, she released a single album.

Kang Nara, who grew up in North Korea, had never used the internet before defecting. In North Korea, smartphones are only allowed for a small number of privileged individuals. Even they can only access the strictly controlled national intranet. Platforms such as YouTube, Telegram, Instagram, and Google are completely inaccessible.

Over the past decade, many North Korean defectors, including Kang Nara, have shared their daily lives through YouTube. Videos by defectors are the only channel that shows the 'life in North Korea,' which is otherwise difficult to access. Defector YouTubers share videos about the food North Koreans eat, North Korean slang, and their daily routines.

In the 2010s, as public interest in North Korea increased domestically, many broadcasting programs featuring defectors were aired. Kang appeared on "Now, I Will Go to Meet You" in 2011 and "Moranbong Club" in 201x.

Kang stated, "While doing broadcasts, I became interested in beauty, makeup, and fashion, and I opened a YouTube channel to record my daily life for those who like me through the broadcasts."

On her channel 'Nolsnaera TV,' she shares differences in aesthetic standards between North and South Korea and aspects of life in North Korea. Popular videos include "Things to Prepare When Defecting," "Popular Korean Foods Not Available in North Korea," and "North Korean Makeup."

Meanwhile, Kang Nara added, "I hope the subscriber base in their teens and twenties increases," and "I hope more young people become interested in unification and North Korea."