ABC Evening News for Friday, July 1, 1977

INTRODUCTION HARRY REASONER; BARBARA WALTERS (NYC)

CARTER / B-1 BOMBER / CRUISE MISSILE

(S) Def. Secy. Harold Brown says savings from halt to B-1 bomber prod. will offset dvt. of cruise missile. Though B-1 decision made, debate conts. REPORTER: Barbara Walters

(No location given) Brown reassures public US won't bargain away cruise missile in talks with USSR. [BROWN - says US must cont. to assure that SALT position doesn't interfere with plans to incorp. cruise into bomber force.] At last SALT mtg., USSR rejected US plan to limit air launch cruise to 1500 mi.; Brown says that's limit minimum US could accept & still meet strategic needs. [BROWN - says US willing to discuss anything, but own judgement re: US needs have not changed. Doesn't think B-1 & cruise decisions should inhibit ability to get fair arms agreement. US wasn't prepared to give up cruise before & isn't now.] Brown notes future uses of cruise; even so it has limitations. REPORTER: Bettina Gregory

(No location given) (Def. Dept. film shown.) Capabilities of Air Force & Navy cruise missiles noted. Wt. Hse. says they can take place of B-1; others say they can't. REPORTER: Jules Bergman

(S) Carter gave 1 reason for B-1 decision as showing USSR we're serious re: arms limitation. 1st reaction from USSR criticizes choice of alternative. Tass says dvt. of cruise will open new round in arms race. REPORTER: Harry Reasoner

NEUTRON BOMB DEBATE

In DC, talk is of neutron bomb. REPORTER: Harry Reasoner

(DC) Rpt. on Sen. debate & action re: neutron bomb. Sen. holds both closed & open sessions to debate issue & still can reach no decision. Fight against bomb led by Mark Hatfield; for bomb led by John Stennis. [STENNIS - says bomb has benefits of such weapon without likelihood of as much wide destruction.] [HATFIELD - says that's reason to be hesitant re: bomb; is more invitation to use it.] Some Sens. & Pres. say they don't know enough about bomb yet to judge. REPORTER: Frank Reynolds

SALT MEETING

(S) US & USSR delegations meet in Geneva, re: SALT; no details given. Both agree to meet next wk. REPORTER: Barbara Walters

COMMERCIAL: Listermint Mouthwash; Bufferin Pain Reliever.)

GROSSE ABDUCTION CASE

(S) Teenager Charlotte Grosse is reunited with family in Sarasota, FL, after being abducted from Girl Scout camp. Suspect is in custody. REPORTER: Harry Reasoner. (Sarasota, FL) Captor left girl alone in Siesta Key hse.; she called home & was told to escape by sheriff's deputies. [Sheriff's dept. spn. Cpl. Ray PILON - notes instructions given girl.] Apprehended in connection with case is Wilfred Bannister. [PILON - notes details re: suspect's capture.] Bannister held in Sarasota Cnty. jail. REPORTER: Bernard Shaw

TONRY / ELECTION FRAUD

(S) Former Rep. Rich. Tonry admits to election fraud in last yr.'s election. In return, fed. prosecutors drop felony charges. Possible sentencing noted. REPORTER: Barbara Walters

ENERGY PLAN / GASOLINE TAX

(S) Admin. energy officials say they'll ask Cong. again for standby gasoline tax & may call for gasoline rationing if tax denied again. REPORTER: Harry Reasoner

ECON. / PROJECTIONS / SOCIAL SECURITY INCR.

(S) Pres. Carter sends Cong. econ. projections for next 5 yrs. REPORTER: Harry Reasoner

(DC) Details of Carter's rpt. noted. Ed. Kennedy intros. tax cut proposed to Sen.; details cited. Social Security cost of living incr. begins today. REPORTER: Dan Cordtz

MEDICARE & FOOD STAMP COSTS UP

(S) Medicare premium goes up today. Food stamp benefit prices also incr. effective today. REPORTER: Barbara Walters

STK. MKT. RPT. (S) REPORTER: Barbara Walters

WATER POLLUTION STANDARDS / COMPLIANCE

(S) Also going into effect today are tougher fed. water pollution standards; are so strict, 1/2 of all cities in cntry. can't meet them. REPORTER: Harry Reasoner

(Camden, NJ) Case in point is sewage treatment system of Champaign - Urbana, 11, whose sewage flows into Wabash R. Details of problem explained. EPA says system does best it can without fed. financial aid to meet new standards. EPA says ex. of other kind of noncompliance is Camden, NJ, plant, where effective attempts to meet new standards haven't been made, according to agency. This results in pollution of Delaware R. Fed. money slow in coming; those plants that don't get money &/or don't meet requirements may be taken to ct. REPORTER: Gregg Dobbs

CA DROUGHT / LOS ANGELES

(S) Los Angeles, CA, residents ordered to cut water usage by 10%. REPORTER: Barbara Walters

COMMERCIAL: Brim Coffee; Vaseline Petroleum Jelly; Publishers' Clearing Hse.; Hoover Vacuum Cleaners.

ISRAEL / S. LEBANON

(S) Israel says it will intervene in S. Lebanon if Palestinian presence there incrs., due to fighting between Christians & Palestinian -backed Muslims. REPORTER: Barbara Walters

NAACP CONV. / VANCE / AFRICA

(S) At NAACP conv. in St. Louis, Secy. State Vance says US shouldn't base entire African policy on build-up of USSR & Cuban forces there, but can't ignore action either. Vance says there's danger of mil. action in n.e. Africa. REPORTER: Barbara Walters

1977.07.01 ETHIOPIA / USSR INFLUENCE

(S) In Ethiopia, Marxist govt. becomes more at odds with neighbors. Fidel Castro has said he has sent diplomatic advisers to cntry., but no mil. ones. REPORTER: Barbara Walters

(Addis Ababa, Ethiopia) Rpt. on influence of USSR in Ethiopia. Cntry.'s mil. forces, to battle Eritrean secessionists in n. & Somali forces fighting over disputed territory in e. & s.e., noted. Coup by Lt. Col. Mengister Halle Mariam, earlier in yr., noted. Land reforms, theatrical indoctrination & student unrest noted. REPORTER: Bill Zimmerman

1977.07.01 RHODESIA / GUERRILLA ATTACK 5:18:50-5:19:00 . . . . . Friday . . . . . ABC

(S) Guerrillas attack resort at Victoria Falls along Rhodesia-Zambia border; details noted. REPORTER: Harry Reasoner

CIGARETTES & SMOKING

(S) New type of cigarette comes on mkt. in Britain; is blend of wood pulp & tobacco. British tobacco ind. says these are healthier; anti-smoking groups say at best they're just less bad than pure tobacco. (Film shown.) There's similar controversy in US as more smokers switch to low tar brands. REPORTER: Barbara Walters

(NYC) Rise in smoking since 1964 noted. Toward goal of growth, 1 co. that holds almost 1/3 of mkt. now spends $40 million on ads for new product, low tar & nicotine brand. [R.J. Reynolds Co. div. spn. Clyde FITZGERALD - notes possible incr. in health concern is sparking interest in low tar brands.] Sales appeal of light cigarettes noted. It turns out health not main reason for popularity. [MEN - like taste & ads.] Am. Cancer Society says light cigarettes reduce chance of lung & heart disease, but are still dangerous. [Society spn. Dr. E. Cuyler HAMMOND - says light cigarettes not as bad, but hopes people move to not smoking at all. Notes there's about 7 yrs. difference in life expectancy in smokers of low & high tar brands.] Health factors contrasting light cigarette smokers & nonsmokers noted. REPORTER: Bill Wordham

COMMERCIAL: Clorets; Geritol; Nescafe Coffee;Doan's Pills.

WIMBLEDON / WADE / MEN'S FINALS

(S) British tennis player Virginia Wade wins Wimbledon tournament, in yr. of Queen Elizabeth II's jubilee. REPORTER: Barbara Walters

(London, England) Rpt. on match between Wade & Betty Stove. Queen presents trophy. REPORTER: Jack Smith

(S) Men's finals to be between Jimmy Connors & Sweden's Bjorn Borg. REPORTER: Barbara Walters

DEATHS / "NTL. OBSERVER" / SEATO

(S) Dow Jones & Co. halts publication of "Ntl. Observer", with wkend.'s issue. SEATO also dies this wk., with hdqtrs. in Bangkok, Thailand, closed. SEATO was conception of John Foster Dulles, but never became what he envisioned. Occasionally, Lyndon Johnson mentioned it as reason for VN war. REPORTER: Harry Reasoner

GOOD NIGHT

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