Oprah Winfrey has taken to the op-ed page of the New York Times to advance one of her most high-profile causes: convincing people to stop texting while driving.
Here's an excerpt (read the full piece here):
At least 6,000 people were killed by distracted drivers in 2008, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and the number is rising... But we are hesitant to change. I saw this firsthand when I instituted a policy at my company that forbids employees from using their phones for company business while driving. I heard countless stories about how hard it was for people to stop talking and texting while driving. Everyone is busy. Everyone feels she needs to use time in the car to get things done. But what happened to just driving?
It was difficult for my employees to adjust, but they have. Life is more precious than taking a call or answering an e-mail message. Because even though we think we can handle using our cellphone in the car, the loss of thousands of lives has shown we can't.
Oprah has also created a 'No Phone Zone' pledge website, asking people to promise to "help put an end to distracted driving by committing to drive as responsibly as I can."
Here's a map of the various laws governing cellphone use while driving in different U.S. states.