‘Free Choice’

Your editorial (May 17), “Blackout of Free Choice,” on Cox Cable’s decision to black out a program on the San Ysidro massacre was commendable in intent, but I think you missed a fine point. While government must never be seen as arbitrating what the viewers may see, the private media can and should have the same moral discretion in what they broadcast as the audience has in choosing what to watch.

I believe there are limits on what violence it is moral to televise; Cox’s decision in this case may or may not have been appropriate, but its decision should not be challenged on censorship grounds. If the depressing clamor to televise executions ever catches on in some commercial quarters, I hope Cox, or whoever, has the will and decency to resist it.

ROBERT M. LEVOR

Santa Monica