Radio Waves of Freedom: Broadcasting Truth to North Korea

Lee Si-young and her team at the Free North Korea Radio station are committed to bringing uncensored news to the people of North Korea, despite risks and dwindling support. Funding cuts and policy changes have silenced major broadcasters, sparking fears of abandonment. Their efforts continue to impact defectors and North Koreans abroad.

For two hours every day, Lee Si-young and her colleagues at Free North Korea Radio broadcast real-time, uncensored news into North Korea. These broadcasts offer a rare glimpse of the outside world to North Koreans, who risk imprisonment if caught listening.

This year, however, Lee expressed a growing sense of unease. Major broadcasters in the U.S. and South Korea have stopped airing Korean-language broadcasts due to funding cuts and policy shifts. ''Our frustrations with the U.S. and South Korean governments are growing over their suspensions of radio broadcasts,'' said Lee, a defector and head of the small FNK radio station in Seoul.

Lee Young-hyeon, another defector, has launched a website and app to provide North Koreans abroad with alternative access to outside information. Despite the restrictive environment in North Korea, these efforts aim to demonstrate that a freer world exists beyond their borders.

(With inputs from agencies.)