Tuesday, November 22, 2005

ABC NEWS To Air JENNINGS' Last Documentary

(From Reuters)

Four months after his death from lung cancer, ABC will broadcast the last news documentary reported by veteran anchor PETER JENNINGS -- an hour-long study of America's health-care system, the network said on Thursday.

The documentary is set to air on December 15th, with Jennings appearing on camera in interview segments for the piece, most of them conducted months before learning he had cancer, Executive Producer PETER YELLIN said in a statement.

The Canadian-born newsman, who had anchored ABC's WORLD NEWS TONIGHT since 1983, died on August 7th at age 67, about four months after announcing he was beginning chemotherapy for lung cancer.

Jennings, who made more than 60 prime-time documentaries during his career, had planned the piece to be the first of a series exploring problems in the U.S. health-care system, "a subject he believed was critical to all Americans," Yellin said.

The broadcast was written and edited while he underwent treatment for his illness.

"Peter's voice was not strong enough to narrate the program, but, as you will see, it is still very much Peter Jennings' reporting," Yellin said.

The documentary, titled PETER JENNINGS REPORTING: BREAKDOWN -- AMERICA'S HEALTH INSURANCE CRISIS, will open with a special introduction by CHARLES GIBSON, one of the WORLD NEWS TONIGHT fill-in anchors mentioned as candidates to replace Jennings permanently.

An ABC NEWS spokeswoman said a narrator for the piece had not been chosen.

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