Public Service Announcements

Around 90% of participants in a study on reception of PSAs understood the PSA "eyes on the road hands on the wheel" to mean either "stay alert" or "don't drive distracted" (US Department of Transportation, 2017). This implies that PSAs certainly get their message across when they are viewed. On average, at least 70% of participants recognized a seat belt PSA, so PSAs stick in the memory of those who view them (US Department of Transportation, 2017). According to the US Department of Transportation (2017), around 60% participants agreed that it was often or always necessary for dynamic PSA signs on roads. In addition, the majority of participants strongly agreed that it was very important to provide information on putting away mobile phones while driving. This shows that people are aware of the problem of distracted driving, and agree that awareness of this problem in others is extremely important. Finally, the participants were asked if would change their behavior if they saw a PSA that said "eyes on the road, hands on the wheel", "don't be a distracted driver", or "drive safely, text later it can wait". The overwhelming majority answered maybe, probably yes, or definitely yes (US Department of Transportation, 2017). PSAs do make a huge difference in driving behavior and give people a reminder of the consequences of distracted driving. The more immediate a reminder, the more it will affect your behavior, so PSAs on signs are even more effective than those viewed on television or in other advertising. PSAs are important parts of preventing dangerous behavior like distracted

A Public Service Announcement (PSA) can help reduce the number of distracted driving accidents by explaining the horrible effects of distracted driving and the best ways to prevent distracted driving. Currently, the main source of distracted driving is cell phones. Cell phones cause a person to text, call, and use social media while driving; all factors that can be a deadly distraction while driving. A cell phone causes much distraction for the driver and may cause the driver to have a car crash that not only affects themselves, but also the surrounding people. As a community, we should be educating people about distracted driving in order to prevent the problem and decrease the number of accidents. Public Service Announcements are important as they provide people with evidence, resources to limit distraction while driving, and helpful/important information. Teenagers, children, and even adults will be able to be informed. Even though educating people through a Public Service Announcement is important, it might not be viewed by most people and will not be effective towards the younger viewers. Teenagers and even adults might dismiss a Public Service Announcement because the announcement does not grab their attention or because the person might not care.

Texting and driving are activities that separately are indispensable in everyday life, but together represent one of the greatest dangers society faces on a daily basis, from the moment the car starts and transits to the desired destination. It is so easy to look at the phone while driving! Everyone justifies themselves, “it’s just a second”, but everyone also knows, that only takes a second to have a fatal accident. This is why there is the need to raise public awareness and campaigning as in the Public Service Announcement, “Don’t text and drive”, produced and air on TV by News Channel 6 ABC, where the Pathos appeal in the most powerful rhetorical device used in the PSA and Logos and Ethos are also visible, but they are inferred rather than directly enlisted.

Simply putting down your phone and paying attention to the road is a decision that not only could save the life of a driver but could save a whole family and community a whole lot of hurt. At any given time during the day approximately 800,000 people across the United States are on their phone while driving, which explains why texting is the number one distraction for teens across the country (Don’t Text and Drive-Volunteer Society of America). However, we can change this. Educating teens about the true risks of texting and driving just might save a life. Any text can

Being the cause of a cell phone related accident can leave a person unable to handle the consequences of their actions. There is great concern regarding the dangers of distracted driving. This is made evident by legislation that has been put in place in the United States. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation (2011), nationwide, 34 states, the District of Columbia, and Guam have enacted texting bans. Current data from the National Safety Council (2010) suggest that each year, at least 1.6 million traffic accidents (28% of all crashes) in the United States are caused by drivers talking on cell phones or texting. The U.S. Department of Transportation (2011) states that nine states, the District of Columbia, and

Every American in the U.S has an addiction of being on a phone while driving. The Public Service Announcement (PSA), “The Danger of Texting & Driving” presents an American teenager texting and driving. This PSA shows and explains what can happen when a person is in a vehicle and on a mobile device. As mentioned previously this video demonstrates what consequences can happen as a result of any American simply looking at his or her phone while driving. However, this short video also can teach and demonstrate why anyone should not get on anything that will cause a distraction to the person who is operating the vehicle. In the PSA, “The Danger of Texting and Driving” filmed by Blue Lobster Productions, the video uses pathos which overshadows both ethos and logos regarding the subject of texting and driving.

There were no knowledgeable facts throughout the video expressing the real-world statistics of the death ratio due to texting and driving. Even though the video itself doesn’t provide facts, the description bar evaluates that “over 440,000 people are killed or injured every year by distracted drivers.” This would have been the perfect thing to add into the PSA to back up their reasonings for the production. After experiencing the pathos and ethos of it, seeing the facts in which the video was based off would’ve been helpful in the process of being persuaded not to text and drive. Public Service Announcements should always have reasoning in why they were made and this video did not provide that. The PSA left the viewers to look up the statistics rather than providing

1). Texting and using a cell phone are the two most common distractions while driving (“Distracted” para. 1). It Can Wait campaign has started to stop drivers from using handheld devices (“Distracted” para. 3). Distractions affect one’s driving performance (“Distracted” para. 5). Drivers are distracted around half the time they drive (“Distracted” para. 5).15% to 25% of crashes on all levels are caused by distraction (“Distracted” para. 5). Texting increases the driving risk, even more than regular cell phone use (“Distracted” para. 5). When cops fill out crash reports, the states should keep track of them (“Distracted” para. 6). There are many distraction while driving that may cause the driver to take focus off the road (“Distracted” para. 8). Some distraction that everyone does is : changing the radio or a CD, talking to passenger, and observing the event outside the vehicle (Distracted para. 8). There are effects on telematics on driving behaviors (“Distracted” para. 9). Some say that the electronic device companies need to inform the public about the real use of these devices (“Distracted” para.

Shot to aim directly at people who tend to disregard warnings and are most like to be distracted drivers, texting and driving PSA’s bring awareness and self consciousness to the general public as they display from moderate to severe graphic scenes on what happens when you take your eyes off of the wheel. A distracted driving PSA ad is not only one of the best ways to alert people of the consequences of unfocused driving, but it can also reduce the number of distracted driving incidents, thus keeping families not only careful and alert, but alive and safe.

In 2011 alone, 1.3 million car crashes involved the driver being distracted because they were using their phone. This is a shocking statistic and what’s even more frightening is that even though it is a big problem, people continue to drive while distracted. There are plenty of methods that the public has tried for these distracted drivers to stop. One way is through a PSA, or a Public Service Announcement. PSAs are just what it sounds like. They notify the public about a certain topic that is critical to be heard. Even though PSA’s are have not been proven to be helpful according to recent statistics, I believe that it is just a good method that takes time.

While some believe that there should be tougher laws for distracted driving, educating people about distracted driving would be more beneficial because they will learn about the dangers about distracted driving and it will make them drive more focused and not get

Distracted driving is a major problem all over the world. Some people believe that making distracted driving against the law will help, but many people don’t take the law into consideration. People should be taught that distracting yourself while driving is serious and very life threatening to you, the people in the car with you, and the other individuals on the road. Many people lack the common sense to not use their phone while getting behind the wheel. There should be a class or warning when someone gets their license reminding them the hazards of being on your phone while

Over the years we have come to be excited and weary for the new technological advances. However, the outcome of these advances is causing major controversial debates worldwide. A paramount complication with technology has been confronted such as; Distracted Driving and the effect on this based on PSA’s. One might say the public service announcements will affect the numbers of distracted driving, while others believe that public service announcements is doing nothing to diminish the numbers of distracted drivers. With more than a handful of public service announcements on distracted driving to give knowledge of the fatal consequences, it could be argued that PSA’s have been seen yet ignored.

C: Conclusion about this detail: It is very important to first acknowledge the dangerous impact of this distraction’s alarming statistics that shows about the safety of driving while texting. Many people don’t see and think about the consequences that can occur in this situation. More and more companies are implementing new strategies, for instance, signing a pledge not to use the phone while on the road, and these new changes are adding more responsible drivers. But it is still not enough to say that we have gained control over the problem.

In today’s culture, we can receive information with just the click of a button from a device in our pocket. Texting is an easy and fast way to communicate and give information to other people. Unfortunately, people choose to text while driving, endangering those around them. Today I will share with you the dangers of texting while driving, why you should not engage in it, and how it relates to the public affairs mission here at Missouri State.