For the first time, the world is hearing from the candidates running to be the next United Nation Secretary General.

They’re being put under public scrutiny in televised hearings. It’s a move by the U.N. to open up a normally closed-door process.

CCTV’s U.N. Correspondent Liling Tan reports.

There are tough questions for a big job interview. But in this interview, the job seekers here have to convince entire nations that they’re the best person to serve as the next U.N. Secretary General.

Each candidate has 10 minutes for a presentation, followed by an intense two-hour Q&A session unscripted and unedited.

Over the next two days, five more candidates from Slovenia, Croatia, Moldova, New Zealand and Macedonia will undergo the same grueling interview process

This level of transparency is uncharted territory for the U.N. One key question is what impact this will have on the eventual outcome in the fall, especially since the Security Council will still have the final say on who gets to be U.N. chief. That decision remains in the hands of the permanent five veto-wielding council members, most notably the U.S. and Russia.

VOA former managing editor Luis Costa Ribas on UNSG candidates

For more on this race to head the United Nations, CCTV America’s Elaine Reyes spoke to Luis Costa Ribas from Boston. He’s a former managing editor at Voice of America.