Teens campaign against texting and driving

TULSA - For the past 18 months, teen volunteers have been educating students and lobbying for tougher laws. Now the next phase of the campaign is underway.

A 30 second public service announcement soon hit the airwaves as part of "Generation TXT", a program sponsored by the Crime Commission.

Over the coming days, the PSA will begin airing on local television stations, as well as two minute music video that is being featured on the web. Both were created by students and they hope it will leave a lasting impression on teens.

Glade Inhofe is a volunteer with "Generation TXT". He wrote and starred in the "Generation TXT" music video and public service annoucement.

Inhofe hopes this new campaign will be more effective than traditional PSA's that try to scare teens away texting while driving.

He says, "Most of the PSA's we saw were scary and gory. We didn't think that was effective. So we decided on music because it reaches out to more people. People will remember a music video rather than another scary commercial."

According the Crime Commission, despite the warnings, nearly half of teens questioned in a recent poll admitted to texting while driving. Statistics also show that 21 percent of fatal accidents involving drivers ages 16 to 19 are the result of cell phone usage.

Carol Bush with the Crime Commission believes Generation TXT will be effective in reaching students, because the message is delivered by their peers.

She says, "What I love about this project is it's always hard to break a cycle. It takes a generation, especially when you are trying to change society. So anytime we have kids involved in who can get that message out, it's a good program."

Following Tuesday's event at OU Tulsa, in which the new campaign was unveiled, the Crime Commission says 22 teens signed up to be a part of "Generation TXT."

The Crime Commission hopes to see even more students get involved with the program at their schools next year.