Rogue Central supposes that Bernie Foster, the publisher of The Skanner newspaper, could have created more of a stir last week by inviting Bush appointee John Ashcroft to give the keynote address at the 15th annual Martin Luther King Jr. breakfast. Instead, Foster chose someone whose record on race is almost as controversial: Philip Morris.

Mark Berlind, from the cigarette king's NYC headquarters, was supposed give a talk about how the tobacco industry ostensibly "gets it" at last. If so, it's a little late.

Several people at the breakfast, including state Sen. Margaret Carter and U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, publicly questioned Foster's choice of speakers--and with good reason. Documents uncovered in the recent tobacco litigation revealed that the history of the tobacco industry targeting African Americans is rich. A 1978 research study by Lorillard Tobacco Company, for example, stated that black high-school students compose "the base of our business." A study by the federal Centers for Disease Control found that tobacco companies advertise four to five times more often in African-American communities than in others.

Foster defends himself by saying he couldn't get state officials to explain why so little tobacco prevention money is spent in minority communities, so he invited Berlind to "explain the tobacco settlement."

Foster is right that Oregon's share of the settlement money has not been cut loose. And the state's ranking in tobacco prevention recently dropped from 5th to 22nd in a national survey. But this is no reason to invite the Devil to dance. The invitation is complicated by the fact that The Skanner, like WW, runs advertising from Philip Morris. Foster denies any quid pro quo, but he should have realized the appearance of impropriety he created in giving Philip Morris a podium to sweep over its shameful history.