Texting while driving: Death trumps laughs

To spread the word about the new ban on texting while driving, the Colorado Department of Transportation held a contest that encouraged high schoolers to create put-down-your-damn-cellphone public-service announcements. And surprise, surprise: While several of the runner-up entries on view below used humor as opposed to grimness, the winner above,...
By Michael RobertsDecember 2, 2009
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To spread the word about the new ban on texting while driving, the Colorado Department of Transportation held a contest that encouraged high schoolers to create put-down-your-damn-cellphone public-service announcements.

And surprise, surprise: While several of the runner-up entries on view below used humor as opposed to grimness, the winner above, by students from John F. Kennedy High, revolves around a dead child whose body is seen lying alongside the road. Clearly, CDOT feels texting and driving is no laughing matter.

Runner-ups:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwaFI8llF5o

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lAt-LXLWf0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AibasEOEqY4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpY1rYGDHG0

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Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword‘s news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor’s degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master’s degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

michaelrobertscolo@gmail.com

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