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LEVEL 1- 3 OF 61 STORIES Copyright 1994 American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. All rights reserved ABC NEWS SHOW: ABC World News Tonight 6:30 pm ET March 24, 1994 08:00 Eastern Time Transcript # 4059-8 SHOW-TYPE: Package SECTION: News LENGTH: 567 words HEADLINE: Philip Morris Files Libel Suit Against ABC PAGE 1 BODY: PETER JENNINGS: In Gainesville, Florida, today, a jury has recommended the ultimate penalty for Darnny Rawling, the man who murdered five college students in Florida four years ago. JURY FOREMAN: The majority of the jury, by a vote of 12-0, advise and recommend to the court that it impose the death penalty about upon Danny Harold Rawling. PETER JENNINGS: The jury's recommendation now goes to the judge, who will announce the actual sentence next week. The largest tobacco company in the world, Philip Morris, filed a lawsuit against the American Broadcast Company - this company. Philip Morris is seeking $10 billion for libel. Here's ABC's Jim Angle. JIM ANGLE, ABC News: [voice-over] The Philip Morris claim of libel focuses primarily on a statement in a Day One broadcast that the tobacco industry artificially adds nicotine to cigarettes to keep people smoking. MURRAY BRING, Senior V.P., Philip Morris: These allegations are not true. And ABC knows that they are not true. Philip Morris does not in any way, shape or form spike its cigarettes with nicotine. JIM ANGLE: [voice-over] The ABC report pointed to an industry practice of adding reconstituted tobacco - things such as stalks and stems - to cigarettes. Although Philip Morris acknowledges that the process of making cigarettes changes nicotine levels, the company contends that it actually takes out 20 to 25 percent of the natural nicotine. ABC News sought interviews with Philip Morris officials before the broadcast in question. The company declined and sent a general statement, but would not answer specific questions about its practices. ABC said today it stands by, its reporting. Jim Angle, ABC News, Washington.

ABC World News Tonight, March 24, 1994 PAGE 2 PETER JENNINGS: One other note on this subject. Tomorrow, the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, David Kessler, testifies before Congress. He has suggested that the FDA is considering whether to categorize cigarettes as a carrier for a drug because they contain nicotine, which the government says is, addictive. Should that happen, it could lead to further restrictions on cigarettes - perhaps an effort to restrict the amount of nicotine in cigarettes. Overseas today, in London, a lesson on how to keep the tourists coming and going. At the Tower of London, Queen Elizabeth formally opened a new home for the Crown Jewels - a much larger room than they've had before. Just to make sure the tourists do not linger, there is a conveyor belt on the floor that will move you along even if you want to linger. In case you missed it, here's how Wayne Gretzky of the Los Angeles Kings went into the,history books last night. ANNOUNCER: And Gretzky scores. He•did it. He did it. PETER JENNINGS: Goal number 802, breaking the old National Hobkey League record for most goals in a lifetime held by Gordy Howe. By the way, Gretzky now holds 62 records, including every major offensive record in the National Hockey League. That's his proud wife. When we come back, the American Agenda - the farmers, the vanishing river and the cranes. [Commercial break] The preceding text has been professionally transcribed. However, although the text has been checked against an audio track, in order to meet rigid distribution and transmission deadlines, it has not yet been proofread against videotape. LANGUAGE: ENGLISH LOAD-DATE-MDC: March 25, 1994