SBC journalists respect personal rights, in particular the privacy of individuals and personal information about them. We avoid any unnecessary exposure, sensationalist reporting or emotive portrayal of private matters. However, if there is an overriding public interest in a person, the violation of privacy may not be unlawful, as freedom of information and freedom of the media (see Art. 16 f. Cst) take precedence.

The threshold is lower for public officials, other public figures and celebrities: the more exposed a person is, the more intrusion into their privacy they must tolerate. However, the most intimate aspects of private life (e.g. sexuality, religion, health) are also particularly protected for this group of people.

In any case, managers must be informed if there is to be an intrusion into the protected area of privacy (duty to provide justification).