Universals Without Absolutes: A Theory of Media Ethics
Abstract The global turn in media ethics has presented a tough challenge for traditional models of moral theory: How do we assert common moral standards while also showing respect for the values of those from outside the Western tradition? The danger lies in advocating for either extreme: reason dependent absolutism or cultural relativism. In this paper, I reject Cliff Christian's attempts to solve the problem and propose instead a moral theory of universal standards that are discovered via a mix of rationally grounded methods. Such universality refutes relativism but, because it is grounded in evolutionary naturalism and life world philosophy as opposed to a Kantian or theological transcendentalism it also avoids absolutism.