Are You Nkay? Turns One

Exactly one year ago, I saw the state of North Korean human rights on the internet and I was disappointed.

Frankly, one year later, I am still disappointed but hopeful.

If you thought the cupboard was bare then, somehow nothing much has changed. There has not been any new websites or blogs on NK human rights since I entered. The main LiNK site has been down for over 2 months. Almost all the chapters still use Xanga as their blogging platform (90% of the content in these sites are redundant). It feels like our online presence has taken one step forward and two steps back over the year.

As for my connection to LiNK, that has not fared well either. Originally, I found this site because I want to show LiNK my potential as a blogger to reach out to a wider audience. Now, I find myself drifting farther apart from them. I do not even know if I’ll be a member in the next three months. Despite of this, my belief in the cause has not faltered.

Not everything is negative, there are some highlights. Most notably, we are moving into Web 2.0. One of the biggest coups so far happened on Facebook. In November, students raised over $6000 just by getting people to simply join a facebook group. It is a very impressive feat.

As for this blog I am hard at work establishing myself as both a author and designer. I am beginning to see the limits of putting my site hosted on Blogsome. I plan to move out of there in the months to come.

I have to admit that my blog is in a niche of its own. But still, I am disappointed that my audience hardly grew. Maybe I am not getting my word out or I am simply not putting out quality content. Nonetheless, last week I managed to make my 500th post, not bad for a niche site. I continue to dedicate myself to creating a beautiful site and quality content.

There are other bright spots on the web. OneFreeKorea found something that appealed to the Digg mob, images of North Korean death camps via. Google Earth. Last week, I found a site that translates North Korea/Abduction news for the Japanese audience. The DailyNK had a redesign and are beginning to use embedded videos on their site. I would also like to add DPRK studies and Helping Hands Korea for doing an awesome job. Because of all these sites, I will never run out of things to blog about.

Blogs come and go all the time, my biggest accomplishment is being able to keep the blog alive despite many obstacles and shortcomings. So here’s to another year of giving a voice to those who have none and standing up for those who are weak.