Who is responsible for safeguarding minors at Politikpunkt?
Nina Wolff, as Ansvarig för faktagranskning (Fact-Checking Standards Lead) at Politikpunkt Media Ltd., holds primary editorial responsibility for the protection of minors in all content published on politikpunkt.de. She reports directly to Chefredaktör Martin Krüger and leads dedicated safeguarding reviews for every article involving children.
Our ultimate accountability rests with Politikpunkt Media Ltd., a private company registered in Gibraltar (company number C 92009, Malta Business Registry) with its registered office at Office 9, Business Centre, Valletta, 0000. The company’s editorial leadership ensures that this policy is enforced across all departments and that named editors — including Helena Peters (Redaktionschef) and Patrick Beck (Politikredaktör) — apply it consistently in their daily newsroom decisions. Full details of our editorial team can be found on our team page.
How do we ensure the protection of children in our reporting?
Every article that mentions or depicts a minor under 18 years of age must receive a mandatory additional review by Nina Wolff before publication, regardless of the story’s subject or length. This safeguarding check evaluates necessity, privacy, consent, and potential harm to the child.
We never publish identifying information — including full names, school names, addresses, or recognisable images — about a minor without verifiable written consent from a parent or legal guardian. Exceptions are made only in cases of overriding public interest, such as high-profile criminal investigations or missing-child appeals, and even then only after explicit approval from the Chefredaktör and Nina Wolff. Wherever possible, we use pseudonyms or anonymise details to protect the child’s long‑term welfare. Our broader editorial standards are set out in the editorial policy.
What additional review process is applied to content involving minors?
In addition to the standard editorial and fact-checking workflow, any piece that includes children triggers a dedicated safeguarding assessment led by Nina Wolff’s team. This separate step occurs after initial drafting but before the human editor’s final approval.
The review covers: verification of any consent documentation, assessment of the story’s necessity and proportionality, identification of any unintended consequences for the child or family, and a check against our fact‑checking policy to ensure no fabricated or unverified information about the minor is included. Digital tools — including AI‑assisted research or formatting — are never used to generate or modify content about minors without explicit human oversight. The entire process is documented and logged, and any concerns raised during the review require sign‑off from both Nina Wolff and the relevant section editor before publication can proceed. Our approach to automated tools is detailed in the AI & automation policy.
How can readers raise concerns about content involving minors?
Readers who believe that Politikpunkt has published content that fails to safeguard a minor should contact our dedicated complaints team directly at complaints@politikpunkt.de. All concerns are treated seriously and investigated promptly by the editorial department under the supervision of Nina Wolff.
When a complaint is received, we acknowledge it within two working days and conduct a full review that includes the original writer, the section editor, and the fact‑checking lead. If an error or safeguarding breach is confirmed, we correct the content immediately and publish a transparent correction or removal notice in line with our corrections policy. Where appropriate, we also notify the child’s parent or guardian. For those who wish to follow a more formal path, our complaints procedure outlines the steps beyond the initial contact.
Our commitments
- We will never publish identifying information about a minor without verifiable parental or guardian consent, except in cases of overriding public interest approved by the Chefredaktör and the safeguarding lead.
- We will always assess the potential impact on a child’s well‑being before any story involving them is published, and we will err on the side of protection when there is doubt.
- We will train all editorial staff, freelancers, and contributors on this safeguarding policy annually, and record their completion of the training.
- We will maintain a clear and prompt complaints mechanism for any safeguarding concerns, with a target of acknowledging every complaint within two working days.
- We will review and update this Safeguarding & Minors Policy at least once every 12 months, or sooner if legislation or best practice changes.