Lee Seo-youn rehearses a dance routine she'll perform in a couple of hours in a TV studio. Slender, graceful and dressed in a form-fitting hot pink maxi-skirt, Lee looks like a South Korean celebrity.
As a regular panelist on South Korean television's "Eje Mannareo Gapnida," which airs on cable's Channel A, Lee is one of a dozen or so female North Korean defectors featured on the program.
Part talk show and part talent show, the title translates as "Now On My Way to Meet You," a name that conveys the program's goal of raising awareness between average North and South Koreans.
It has been well received by the South Korean public for its unique approach to the prickly North Korea issue since it debuted in December, with mostly positive reviews and a growing viewership.
Although Pyongyang, North Korea's capital, and Seoul, the South's, are only 120 miles apart, the North remains an unknown land to many here. Media in the South generally adopt a solemn tone when covering North Korean defectors' stories, but this program handles the sensitive topic using humor and a light touch. The defectors act as a window allowing South Koreans a peek at the closed society next door.
With help from three moderators, about a dozen North Korean women compare and contrast the two Koreas' language, culture and customs with a panel of four male South Korean TV personalities.
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