Melina Schaefer

Melina Schaefer

Melina Schaefer is a journalist born in Bremen. She has been studying journalism at Hochschule Hannover since 2024, focusing on political topics and stories that move people.

She is especially passionate about audio journalism – from classic radio to modern audio formats. She discovered her passion for journalism at the age of 13 and knew then that this was the career she wanted. As well as conducting interviews and writing, she aims to work across a wide range of journalistic formats.

Stories by Melina

Masculinity

‘I was a Hitler caricature from a bad Hollywood film’.

He used to march through the streets in a leather coat, carrying the Reich war flag, giving hate speeches and dreaming of the great revolution. Today Axel Reitz works in extremism prevention.

Recommended by the editors

Water

New shores: floating islands between art and ecology

Floating platforms like the ‘Zukunst’ in Hannover create green open spaces – a concept that is catching on around the world.

A houseboat floats towards the viewer on a calm river lined with green trees. In the background rises Hannover’s Ihmezentrum tower block.

After dark

Night-time in the village: shisha in the barn, joyrides through the middle of nowhere

Where nothing seems to happen in the evening, yet everything does: young people in a village in Lower Saxony after dark.

A young man and a young woman look into the camera, standing in front of a barn at night.

Advice

What makes a good photo reportage: characteristics, examples and tips.

A clear focus on the people in the story, powerful pictures, strong storytelling: using examples, we show you the hallmarks of a photo reportage that grips and stays in the mind.

A woman holds two cameras up to her eyes.

Collecting

Nuclear waste in Asse II: what remains

Nuclear waste lies deep inside Asse II – dumped carelessly, barely secured. Now water is getting in. A region has been waiting decades for answers, and the country for a permanent repository.

Award winners

My house wrapped in clouds

Armina Ahmadinia returns to the Caspian Sea. Her photographic work tells of the retreating water, the loss of familiar places and a quiet longing for closeness and home.

Ideals

Wildwuchs works

Community-supported agriculture aims to make environmentally friendly farming possible. Our author wanted to know whether it works and visited a farm.

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