“Communication is not difficult”

HeadlineAffairs employees attended this year's Handelsblatt Summer Camp. They were joined by DFB co-trainer Sandro Wagner, who spoke about the supposed simplicity of communication, among other things. In this article, we discuss why it is often necessary to differentiate in practice.
Virginia Sutter
Virginia Sutter

Virginia Sutter studied Literature, Philosophy and Business-Economics at the University of Durham, UK. She gained practical experience while working in editorial and press departments in the English and German publishing world.

Is authorization for interviews still needed?

The BILD newspaper will no longer submit interviews for approval before publication. An example to regain trust in journalism. Critics, on the other hand, fear a loss of quality. Some politicians have even announced that they will no longer give interviews to this newspaper in protest. This is reason enough to take a closer look at the decision.
Maximilian Pretzel
Maximilian Pretzel

I have always been fascinated by faraway places. Born and later raised in the Hanseatic cities of Soest and Rostock, I was practically born with a thirst for discovery. I wanted to become a diplomat or writer so that I could help shape world events on the ground or on paper. Having set sail, the ship soon set course, taking me to cities such as Dresden, Bath and Prague during my studies of international politics. In Berlin, I finally found my harbor. On board of the best crew, I have been communicating on logistics topics here ever since an industry that can also only be thought of in cross-border terms.

Attitude and Action

Twitter boss Elon Musk now has his press office respond to press inquiries with an automated turd emoji. Here you can find out why we find this unappetizing in many respects.
Jochen Leufen
Jochen Leufen

In German, there is a saying "Don't quack no opera!" That's a pity, because operas master the loud and the soft, the high and the low notes, plus plenty of drama. The texts in classical productions, on the other hand, could sometimes use a little fine-tuning, thinks Jochen Leufen. He writes here because writing is the ideal way for him to express himself in a lasting way. First you develop an image in your head, then you describe what you see, check whether pitch and message harmonize, and then you press the send button. Curtain. Hopefully applause from the audience. Or mild criticism.

More about Jochen Leufen's vita:


HeadlineAffairs was founded by Jochen Leufen in 2004. Prior to that, he had been employed by the global agency network Ketchum since 1995, most recently in the position of authorized signatory / associate jointly responsible for the management of the Munich office. As Practice Leader Corporate and Practice Leader Technology, he represented the German market in both business areas. In his capacity as Group Manager / Senior Vice President, he had direct personnel responsibility in both practices and was in charge of coordinating all customer projects. Jochen Leufen was also responsible for the development of new products and for the new business strategy, as well as for content-related questions concerning the use of digital media.

Jochen Leufen is an active media trainer and he coordinated the planning and implementation of all media training courses at Ketchum in Germany. One of his main areas of work at Ketchum was directly advising clients in the event of a crisis or developing and training preventive issue and crisis management tactics and measures. Due to his training and previous activities, he was also responsible for public affairs at Ketchum.

Jochen Leufen's consulting experience at Ketchum includes work for ADIG (Allgemeine Deutsche Investment Gesellschaft), AMS (American Management Systems), Bayern Online, the Bavarian State Chancellery, the Bavarian SPD, Dow Chemical, Henkel, High Tech in Bavaria (campaign), IBM, Legoland Deutschland, Navigation Technologies, Microsoft Network, the City of Munich, Vereinsbank, VIAG Interkom, the World Congress on Transport Telematics, and a number of Internet companies such as Expedia, Handelsblatt.Interaktiv, LetsBuyIt, and webmiles.

Before joining Ketchum, Jochen Leufen worked for five years as a PR consultant for the agency wbpr in Munich, primarily supporting association clients in the area of environmental protection & public affairs, but also the Boston Consulting Group or Lufthansa Cargo in matters relating to their repositioning. Prior to that, he worked for one year at the federal office of the F.D.P. in the context of a federal election in Bonn and worked for a member of the Bundestag during his studies.

Jochen Leufen holds a degree in administrative sciences from the University of Konstanz. He is married and father of three children.