
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, May 24, 1994                   TAG: 9405240084
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-8   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

R.J. REYNOLDS LAUNCHES AD CAMPAIGN

R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. launched a newspaper advertising campaign Monday to combat federal accusations that secondhand cigarette smoke causes thousands of deaths to nonsmokers each year.

"It's a campaign to let people know there's a real issue of prohibition being raised in this country, and we think they ought to have an opportunity to hear both sides of it," said David Fishel, spokesman for Reynolds.

The ads acknowledge that "As it relates to smokers, in our opinion smoking is a risk factor for certain diseases."

But they challenge a 1993 Environmental Protection Agency report that said secondhand smoke kills about 3,000 nonsmoking Americans a year and causes hundreds of thousands of cases of respiratory illnesses in children.

The ads contend that nonsmokers living with smokers are exposed on average to secondhand smoke levels equal to smoking about 11/2 cigarettes a month.

The company said the calculations are based on various published reports, including research by tobacco company scientists and those outside the industry.

by CNB