Medienconnect takes great care when covering children and young people. This policy explains the extra editorial safeguards we apply to content involving minors, and it applies to all articles, images, videos and social media posts published on medienconnect.de. Our Standards Lead, Julia Franke, reviews every piece that features a minor before publication. If you have any concerns about our coverage of a child, please email complaints@medienconnect.de.
What does this mean for you as a reader?
When you read an article on Medienconnect that mentions or shows a minor, you can trust that we have followed a strict set of checks designed to protect that child’s privacy, safety and dignity. We never name or picture a child without a clear public-interest justification, and we always seek informed consent from a parent or guardian before conducting an interview or using identifiable material.
Our journalists are trained to think carefully about the long-term impact of publishing a child’s name or image. In practice, that means we often choose to anonymise details – using first names only, changing identifying characteristics or blurring faces – unless the child is in a clearly public role (for example, a youth politician speaking at a formal event) and the context makes identification proportionate.
How this works in practice
Imagine we are reporting on a local school’s climate-strike event. A 14-year-old student volunteers to be interviewed. Our reporter explains exactly how the interview will be used, who will see it and that the child can withdraw at any time. We contact the child’s parents directly to confirm they are happy for their child to participate and to approve any quotes or pictures we intend to use. Julia Franke, as Standards Lead, checks that the consent forms are complete and that the child’s safety is not compromised. The published article uses only the child’s first name and a generic photo of the event rather than a close-up of their face. If anything changes – for instance, the child later asks to be removed – we follow our corrections policy to take the content down promptly.
Who oversees this policy?
Julia Franke, our Ansvarig för faktagranskning (Head of Fact-Checking), also serves as the named Standards Lead for all content involving minors. Every article that features a child is flagged in our editorial system and she reviews it before publication. She works closely with our Chefredaktör, Alexander Seidel, and the wider newsroom to ensure our safeguards keep pace with legal requirements and best practice. You can read more about Julia and the rest of the team on our Our Team page. For the broader principles that guide our reporting, see our Editorial Policy.
What about the company behind Medienconnect?
Medienconnect is owned and operated by Medienconnec Media Ltd., a private company registered in Gibraltar. We disclose this ownership on our Ownership & Funding page because transparency is part of building trust. Our safeguarding rules apply regardless of who owns the publication; editorial decisions about children are made independently by the newsroom and are never influenced by commercial or corporate interests. If you believe this policy has not been followed, you can raise a formal complaint using our Complaints Procedure.
In short
Medienconnect is committed to protecting children in our journalism. Every article involving a minor is reviewed by Julia Franke, our Standards Lead, and we always seek parental consent and prioritise the child’s long-term wellbeing. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact complaints@medienconnect.de.