Listening to Africa
Eyder Peralta, geared up to listen, covers Africa for National Public Radio from his home base in Kenya.
Listen here: 'I Spent 4 Days In Jail In South Sudan. I Won't Stop Reporting On The Crisis There'
Since 2017 NPR’s Eyder Peralta has brought news and nuance from a swath of Africa to radio listeners in the United States. He’s thriving in his first gig as a foreign correspondent, even as he navigates the challenges of a difficult beat.
By Patricia Guadalupe
If you’re a regular listener of National Public Radio, you’ve likely heard Eyder Peralta reporting from Nairobi, Kenya.
He’s been the network’s international correspondent, covering East Africa since 2017, his first posting abroad. The assignment has been equal parts career opportunity of a lifetime and sober challenge to his wits and resourcefulness.
Peralta has a huge region to cover, dangerous in places and where lots of news happens – albeit news that’s not always on the front burner for listeners in the United States. Yet, he consistently manages to find the relevance in stories that will get them on the air. Take his reporting on Africa’s youth.
“I’m currently working on a series looking at young people on the continent. This is the fastest-growing continent in the world,” Peralta said. “By 2100, half of all young people will come from Africa. In a continent full of natural wealth, youth is its most important. So this is a do-or-die moment for the African countries. Will they harness young people? Or let them wither and risk the chaos that will undoubtedly come from that?”
A matter of such importance is sure to win the attention of NPR’s listeners. But Peralta believes that complete coverage of a region must also include less obvious stories, the offbeat material that will surprise and engage audiences.
To that end, he’s currently wrapping up two years of reporting on Ugandan activist Stella Nyanzi, “the rudest woman in Uganda,” so named by the government that jailed her for what was called a vulgar poem about the country’s president.
It’s getting stories like these that make the challenge of covering Africa utterly rewarding, said Peralta. “I had done a lot of overseas reporting, but this is my first time living abroad [as an adult],” he said. “It’s been thrilling, and I have learned so much. But this beat can be rough. My region encompasses dozens of countries and even more languages. I am constantly learning. It’s also a region that is more and more hostile to journalists.”
Not long after he arrived in Africa, he ended up in a South Sudanese jail. He had traveled there to report on the civil war between the North Sudanese Arab Muslims and the South Sudanese Christian Africans, only to be arrested and accused of being a spy. The soldiers who detained Peralta kept insisting he was Arab while he repeated he was Latin American. Peralta was released after four days in prison without any charges and sent back to Kenya. While he says he would like to return to report from South Sudan, each of his requests for a visa has been denied.
“I’ve covered a couple of revolutions and a couple of historic transfers of power,” he said. “And I’ve witnessed waves of hope followed by brutal repression. As a human – I think, especially, as a child of war – you can’t help but get emotionally invested. So that part is always hard.”
Peralta was born in Nicaragua and left with his family to the United States during the height of the war between the Contras and the Sandinistas in the 1980s. The family won asylum and settled in Miami, where Peralta grew up and graduated from Florida International University. Before joining NPR as a producer, Peralta was a features writer for the Houston Chronicle.
“I think in terms of painting,” he said, describing his storytelling process. “In print, you’re creating still life; in radio you are creating Impressionism. Radio is intimate and so much about emotion. So many of the things that are important in a print piece are often left out in a radio piece.”
And, while Latin America naturally is a big interest for him, it’s Africa that’s become Peralta’s gateway to deep professional – and personal – growth. “I went where there was a gig, and it is one of best decisions I’ve ever made,” he said. “I think covering this continent has made me a better reporter. It has made me a better human.”
Of course, Peralta wouldn’t mind one day reporting from Latin America.
“If I am ever lucky enough to be based in my home turf, I will come to it with sharper skills and a broader appreciation for how history unites us,” he said.
Now that he’s a seasoned foreign correspondent, what advice would he offer to Latino and Latina journalists interested in reporting overseas?
“Just go for it,” Peralta replied, “and approach it with an open mind. Our lived experiences give us insight not just into Latin America. Those experiences, combined with who you are, will give you a different perspective wherever you go and whatever you cover, and that’s a huge advantage.”