Too Graphic? Please.
An advertising executive in Europe helped craft a new Public Service Announcement that warns about the dangers of texting while driving. It is currently being shown in Europe, but not on U.S. television because it is said to be too graphic. Huh? Has anyone watched some of the shows and movies that are targeted at teenagers? Graphic is one way to describe them. But perhaps there is opposition to the PSA because it involves real-life consequences, not the feel-good endings associated with both fictional and reality programming that dominates the media. The PSA is of high-quality and doesn’t pander to those who want the unpleasantness of life filtered for them. This is a serious issue that deserves this kind of wake-up call. The publicity the PSA is generating is itself successful in furthering the cause of making people think before they text-and-drive. Count me in as supporting more widespread distribution of the PSA. Yes, viewers should be warned it is graphic, but give them the opportunity to see it if they so choose.
August 26, 2009 @ 5:33 pm
I would have to agree. However, until more teens see this PSA on television, they will continue to text and drive. I feel as though some teens will change their behavior only if “everybody” is talking about the latest trend, or way to behave. There is a suburb close to my house in Illinois called Park Ridge, and their fire station advertises “Don’t Text and Drive” on the busy intersection of Devon and Cumberland. I have spoken, and even joked with many teens and people in their early 20s who don’t take the sign seriously because they have not seen this PSA, and most likely won’t until it is nationally broadcasted on television. I believe the information one would take from the PSA is well-worth the graphic nature, and I think your idea of forewarning viewers is a splendid way to reach common ground.