Jackson reaction

I don’t know which is worse: chastising a woman for expressing herself, or a tape delay at the Grammys and Oscars this year (“Super Bowl Fallout Still Shaking Things Up,” by Lynn Smith, Feb. 5). A five-minute delay is ridiculous and so is FCC Chairman Michael Powell.

If it’s the kids we are worried about, then maybe the FCC should spend the taxpayers’ money encouraging parents to take a more active role in what their children watch.

Michael Powell must have his job title confused with that of Big Brother.

Joe Moran

Hollywood

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I found the underlying assumptions of Reed Johnson’s piece (“Oh Say Can’t You See Yourself,” Feb. 4) very troubling. The essay suggests that Roseanne’s crotch-grabbing antics at a San Diego Padres game, Ozzy Osbourne’s mumbling “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” and Janet Jackson’s exposed breast are comparable to Tommie Smith and John Carlos choosing to make a black power salute at the 1968 Olympics.

Has political dissent become a kind of faux pas? It saddens me that the L.A. Times would join the ranks of those diminishing the importance of political dissent in a democracy.

Mary F. Corey

Beverly Hills