YouTube deletes North Korea-promoting channel

Jan. 8 (UPI) — A North Korean YouTube channel featuring a young woman guiding viewers around Pyongyang has been removed for the second time in the last two months, citing sanctions.

The “Echo of Truth Returns” channel, featuring a North Korean woman named Un A, had been created on Dec. 22 after the original Echo of Truth channel was removed from the video platform in mid-December, Yonhap reported Friday.

The channel, which focused on challenging myths about North Korea and COVID-19 last year, regularly featured the English-speaking host in her “daily life” in Pyongyang. Videos showed Un A exercising by the capital’s Taedong River or touring North Korean amusement parks and supermarkets.

Last month after the initial termination of her channel on YouTube, the North Korean host condemned the action and claimed her work corrected misconceptions about the Kim Jong Un regime. Last year, Un A was also active on Twitter, promoting North Korea under the handle @coldnoodlefan.

The Echo of Truth replacement channel was removed by Friday. According to South Korean television network SBS, YouTube removed the channel to comply with sanctions and regulations. Analysts in the South have said the channel was likely created by North Korea’s Propaganda and Agitation Department, a government bureau under United Nations sanctions.

Other North Korean or pro-North Korean channels are being suspended, according to Yonhap. The “Red Star TV” channel, reportedly managed by a group based in Russia, disappeared on Thursday but was back by Friday, under a new account with the same name. The channel has re-uploaded Korea Central Television footage, the report said.

Red Star TV was previously taken down in July for violating terms of service. YouTube shut down the account multiple times in 2019 and 2020.

Some channels, including the “New DPRK” YouTube channel, remain operational on the platform. The account, which targets an overseas Korean-speaking audience, has 17,000 subscribers.