Based on the communication ethics of Ptahhotep and other inclusivist communication value systems, including several additional non-Western (Confucian, Buddhist, Aborigine, Cree, San, Māori, Ubuntu, and Islamic) as well as Western ones (Stoic, Christian, Kantian, socialist, liberal, and journalistic), we propose seven principles as common ground for the future regulation of media communication on a global scale. All seven are formulated in a manner similar to Ptahhotep’s, providing a flexible range of norms allowing, for example, hate speech to be dealt with (...) by criminalization, or in civil law, or by means of ethics rules and self-regulation, depending on the severity of the involved threats to humanity, to human beings, or to other core values. We reject an often-paralyzing comparative intercultural juxtaposition of individualism versus collectivism, instead suggesting an inclusivist and interculturally principled common ground for the regulation of communication. (shrink)

Evolutionäre Fortschritte, die nicht zum Menschen führen, etwa die Entwicklung der Elefanten, der Wale oder die künftige Evolution des Menschen, die jenseits der menschlichen Kultur stattfinden, müssen gleichwertig mit kulturellen Fortschritten eingestuft werden, damit die Kultur selbst weiterentwickelt werden kann. Angesichts modernster Forschungsergebnisse, die Großartiges in der Kultur und in der Natur nicht zu kurz kommen lassen, bietet diese Arbeit u.a. neue, ausführliche und sorgfältige Definitionen von «Fortschritt» und «Kultur». Bei der Beschreibung und Bewertung von kulturellen Fortschritten wird eine globale, (...) nicht-eurozentrische Perspektive angewendet, woraus ein neues Bild von der Entwicklung der Menschheit Konturen annimmt. (shrink)

This paper starts from the assumption that linguistic diversity, and more generally, cultural diversity, are intrinsically good. I will look at their opposites, linguistic and cultural poverty, and the current tendencies towards the latter within the globalization process. I will also briefly explore the relationship between human rights and cultural diversity, which may be viewed as somewhat problematic, but the emphasis will be on what I consider the essential aspect of that relationship, namely, the mutually reinforcing relationship be-tween rights and (...) diversity, and between their opposites, human rights violations and cultural uniformity . In this context, the issue of legislative protection and promotion of cultural diversity will be investigated from a global perspective. Finally, I wish to assess the roles of Africa and of Africanicity with regard to these issues. (shrink)