“American parents are now turning to a British Public Service Announcement to make an impression on American teens.” — Ann Curry

(Caution: Graphic Video)

The “PSA Texting and Driving“ gained a lot of hype last week. If you are unfamiliar with this is Public Service Announcement (PSA), it was created in Wales, U.K., by a local police department targeting the dangers associated with texting while driving. The more than four-minute video, targeted at teenagers, is a powerful and haunting dramatization depicting different scenarios of driving while texting.

Due to the graphic nature of the PSA, much of the U.S. media coverage has surrounded the legality of showing it on U.S. television. However, when U.S. TV viewers realized they were not being shown the entire PSA, many were intrigued and turned to the Internet to view the PSA in its entirety on YouTube (a very similar situation that also occurred with the GoDaddy Super Bowl commercials). [Please note, due to the graphic nature of this message, there now is an age restriction posted.]

The Power of the Internet

In the case of the “PSA Texting and Driving,” the Internet opened the viewing channels for a video otherwise banned from U.S. television and created a visibility via YouTube reaching more than two million views and thousands of comments from around the world as of September 3.

The overwhelming response from U.S. parents and teens on this PSA sparked the interest of many reputable U.S. journalists, including Ann Curry of NBC’s Today Show.

In a recent interview with Donny Deutsch, chairman of Deutsch Inc., and host of CNBC’s “The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch,” Curry inquired about the graphic nature of the PSA and the legalities behind airing it on U.S. television.

Television in the U.S. will have problems airing this but there are many programs currently airing on TV that show violent/graphic footage solely for entertainment purposes. This PSA really is no different and most likely is more effective since it serves a greater purpose other than pure entertainment.

Texting while driving is a serious issue and must be stopped for the safety of all drivers and passengers. For example, just the other night a woman in Baltimore was in a car accident and admitted to police that prior to crashing her car she had been texting.

It seems that the combination of the very graphic nature of this PSA in addition to statistics and word of mouth about this issue is creating an awareness level that is growing by the minute.

Deutsch said it best to Curry in their recent interview when he explained the power of a visual element in conjunction with statistics, etc.

“It’s one thing if I just say to you, ‘You know what, Ann, you increase your risk 23 times when texting,’ and you go, ‘OK.’ We hear the numbers, we hear of the fatalities, but you never actually see it this graphic. It is a phenomenal piece of tape. When you show something this graphic, it stays in people’s heads.”

This PSA does stay with people. It’s been a topic of conversation for weeks and I would expect it to be a regular topic of conversation between parents and teens for quite some time. This PSA has already started to save people’s lives. And, to me, one life saved is well worth showing the graphic nature of this video on television.