Eritrea: Africa's North Korea

Eritrea is sometimes described as "the North Korea of Africa." And it's a deserved title.

The tiny nation, located on the continent’s northeastern coast bordering Ethiopia, Sudan, and Djibouti is ranked dead last out of 180 countries on Reporters’ Without Borders’ World Press Freedom Index. All privately-owned media outlets were shuttered more than a decade ago.

In 2015, Eritreans were by far the largest source of African migrants making the dangerous Mediterranean crossing into Europe.

On this edition of Global Journalist, a look at if things will ever change in Eritrea.

Our guests:

• Leslie Lefkow, the deputy Africa director for Human Rights Watch.
• Tom Rhodes, the East Africa Representative for the Committee to Protect Journalists.
• Ron McMullen, a visiting professor at the University of Iowa and U.S. ambassador to Eritrea from 2007 to 2010.

Note: This program originally aired on Aug. 6, 2015.