Abstract

The article states that the communicational world consists of four types of entities: 1) those that can suffer but cannot be held responsible for their communicative behavior (e.g. babies and some animals), 2) those that can suffer and can be held responsible for their communicative actions (journalists, teachers, entertainers), 3) those entities that cannot suffer but can be held responsible for their communicative behavior (media organizations, communication technologies, journalism as an institution), and 4) those entities that need to be acted on to minimize the suffering of others (climate, journalism, and potentially all entities). This “theory of moral-communicational status” explains what underlies the needs and obligations of all entities. In particular, it implies that animals should be better taken into account in communication and media ethics.