The decision on use of cable television made by the Office of Telecommunications Policy (OTP) in the fall of 1971 is examined with special stress on the regulatory, judicial, and political history of the subject. The various forces at work in the government, in industry, and from the public are studied as they relate to cable television in general and specifically to the 1971 ruling. The author concludes that the decision on cable television was ultimately a political one resulting from a compromise among the forces cited and the FCC and the OTP. (CH)