Feds Launch “Don’t Text & Drive” PSA

AdWeek comments on the below intense PSA issued this week by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:



The most memorable safe-driving PSAs tend to be made overseas—in Britain, Mexico, Australia. But the U.S. adds a powerful new entry to the mix with this brutal spot from The Tombras Group for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Ushering in National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, the spot is so riveting, you should stop reading now and watch it, then share it with your friends and family. It’s OK, we’ll wait. Welcome back. Aimed at teens, it’s incredibly straightforward, simulating an everyday scene cut short by a distracted driver. The theme is “U drive. U text. U pay,” with the hashtag #justdrive. The police officer’s dialogue is perhaps a bit confusing—he almost doesn’t need to be there.