A government plan to broadcast an execution live is drawing sharp criticism as a sign of moral decline, bad news for anyone who expects the state to hold a basic line on dignity.

• The administration is moving toward live streaming an execution, something no modern US government has done.
• The criticism: turning a man's death into a broadcast is degrading, and no argument is needed to see it.
• Defenders point to early American history, when public executions were normal, to justify the move.
• The suspicion is that ratings are the real motive — officials expect people to watch.
• One call to action: staff inside the administration should refuse to take part.

Outlook: Expect growing pressure on the administration to drop the broadcast, with the fight framed as a test of whether the country still treats executions as grim duty rather than entertainment.