1. Would you die for a text? - The Daily Jeffersonian Page 1 of 2
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AT&T External Affairs Director B.J.
Smith, AAA Ohio spokeswoman
Kimberly Schwind, Ohio State Highway
Patrol Trooper Tim Cunningham, and
Ohio House Represenative for the 97th
District Brian Hill, l to r, watch a
documentary at Buckeye Trail High
Would you die for a text? School during an assembly to raise
awareness of the dangers of text
messaging while driving.
Rick Stillion The Daily JeffersonianPublished:November 12, 2012 1:00PM
OLD WASHINGTON -- No text is worth dying for.
That was the message delivered to Buckeye Trail High School students last Thursday morning during an assembly
conducted by AT&T, the American Automobile Association of Ohio and the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
The "It Can Wait" movement focuses on educating the public -- especially teens -- on the dangers of texting and
driving. Those who send text messages while driving are 23 times more likely to be involved in an accident than a
driver who is not texting while driving.
"Our goal is to save lives and make texting and driving as unacceptable as drinking and driving," said Holly
Hollingsworth of AT&T in a press release. "That's why AT&T is committed to putting an end to texting and driving."
AT&T and its 240,000 employees urge all Americans to commit that they will never text and drive.
Students heard from Sharon Montgomery, a distracted driver victim.
Other scheduled speakers included AT&T External Affairs Director B.J. Smith, AAA Ohio spokesperson Kimberly
Schwind, Tpr. Tim Cunningham of the patrol's Cambridge post, and Buckeye Trail High School Principal Bill
Hartmeyer.
"Our goal is to save lives," said Tom Pelto, President, AT&T Ohio. "With the support of AAA and the Ohio Highway
Patrol we're challenging every driver in Ohio to take the pledge to never text and drive again."
As part of the assembly, AT&T announced that the number of pledges received by the company nationwide has
surpassed one million.
Students viewed an AT&T documentary entitled "The Last Text," featuring true stories of lives altered or ended by the
decision to text while driving.
To take the pledge, anyone can log on to www.ItCanWait.com.
"Distracted driving is an epidemic on our roadways, and we need people all across Ohio to take action in their
communities to help put a stop to it," said Col. John Born, highway patrol superintendent.
AT&T plans to spend tens of millions of dollars on the campaign in 2012 and has made it an ongoing commitment in
future years. The effort is comprised of several key initiatives, including:
http://www.daily-jeff.com/local%20news?page=2 11/14/2012

2. Would you die for a text? - The Daily Jeffersonian Page 2 of 2
• Encouraging its 240,000 employees to take the pledge and, in turn, urge all people to commit that they will never text
and drive. On an average day, AT&T retail store and call center employees speak to customers more than 500,000
times.
• Working with TV and music celebrities to deliver a strong no-texting-while-driving message via TV ads, concerts,
public appearances, Twitter and Facebook.
• Launching an aggressive social media campaign with advertising on Facebook and Twitter to encourage Americans to
take the pledge and to share their pledges with their friends via social media.
• Educating the public using TV ads on the dangers of texting while driving that will run during high-profile events and
teen-focused programs.
• Working to provide a toolkit of no-texting-while-driving information to every high school in the country.
• The AT&T DriveMode™ 2 app has been downloaded more than 80,000 times.
• Challenging device makers and app developers to work with AT&T so that all devices include a pre-loaded, no-text-
and-drive technology solution as soon as possible.
• Launching an online driving simulator at www.ItCanWait.com so that anyone with access to the Internet can
experience the dangers of texting while driving.
• Bringing an in-car simulator to more than 200 locations before the end of this year.
• Enlisting others - including law enforcement, educators, national retailers, consumer safety groups, legislators and the
entire wireless industry - to join the no-text-and-drive movement.
• Asking more than 1,000 of AT&T's strategic and other major suppliers to encourage their employees to pledge not to
text and drive.
rstillion@daily-jeff.com
http://www.daily-jeff.com/local%20news?page=2 11/14/2012