CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF : SAN FRANCISCO : McCarthy Will Seek Reelection

Democratic Lt. Gov. Leo T. McCarthy announced he will seek a third term and offered a plan he said could improve the quality of televised advertising in this fall’s general election campaign. McCarthy proposed that he and the Republican candidate--either state Sen. Marian Bergeson of Newport Beach or Sen. John Seymour of Anaheim--contribute $500,000 each to a fund to jointly buy a series of 30-second TV commercials. In the ads, each candidate would get 15 seconds to state a position on an issue. McCarthy also proposed that each candidate appear on camera--or use his own voice on the radio--when airing campaign advertising that criticizes the opponent’s record. An aide to Bergeson said she would probably not participate because she believes 15 seconds is insufficient to adequately discuss an issue. Seymour flatly rejected the idea.