Acknowledgement...

[From Associated Press]

Whitney Houston Acknowledges Drug Abuse

NEW YORK (AP) - Whitney Houston admits she's abused drugs in the past, but says she's gotten beyond that time through prayer.

The Grammy-winning singer also discusses the pressures of stardom and her decade-long marriage to Bobby Brown in an interview with Diane Sawyer on "Primetime," scheduled to air at 9 p.m. EST Wednesday on ABC.

When Sawyer asks her, "Is it alcohol? Is it marijuana? Is it cocaine? Is it pills?" Houston responds, "It has been at times."

"All?" Sawyer asks.

"At times," Houston says. "Uh-hm."

The 39-year-old concedes she's "addicted to a few things."

"Making love," Houston says. "I don't like to think of myself addicted. I like to think ... I had a bad habit ... which can be broken."

Houston's shockingly thin frame at last year's Michael Jackson (news) tribute sparked reports that she was ill, which she vehemently denies. She also says she's not anorexic or bulimic.

"Let's get that straight. I am not sick. OK?" she says. "I've always been a thin girl. I am not going to be fat, ever. Let's get that straight. Whitney is not going to be fat, ever."

Brown also appears in the interview, and says he's frequently used marijuana because he's been diagnosed as bipolar. The 33-year-old was arrested last month in Atlanta on drug and traffic charges.

"Me and drugs. We're not friends. We're not friends at all," Brown says. "I'm a very high-strung person. ... (Marijuana) seems to help me ... from going up and down."

Houston says she's done partying now, and has found strength through daily prayer. Her new album, "Just Whitney," comes out Dec. 10.

"I'm not the strongest every day, but I'm not the weakest, either," she says. "And I won't break."

NEWSFILE: 3 DECEMBER 2002