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“Oprah” Turns Ferst Center into No Phone Zone
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The Ferst Center for the Arts was
transformed into a television studio Friday, April 30. Georgia Tech students
joined those from Savannah College of Art & Design, Emory University,
Georgia State University and a handful of high schools gathered for the
satellite taping of Friday’s “Oprah Winfrey Show.”Georgia Tech’s Ferst Center was one
of five satellite feeds set up for Oprah’s Friday show, which was dedicated to
Winfrey’s No Phone Zone campaign. Launched in January, the initiative seeks to
garner pledges from viewers to refrain from talking on the phone or texting
while driving. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, drivers
using hand-held devices are four times more likely to get into a serious crash.“Oprah” show organizers seated
roughly 500 people under bright studio lights and handed out signs declaring a
“No Phone Zone.” In a first for the top-rated daytime talk show, four other
cities—Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.—joined the Ferst
Center in a live link to the Chicago studio. In different segments, Winfrey spoke
with hosts stationed at each site. Actress Holly Robinson Peete moderated the
Georgia Tech crowd.As the feed cut to the Ferst Center
and the stage lights brightened, audience members responded by standing,
cheering and waving their signs. At Tech, Lawrenceville resident Lisa Duffner recounted
to Winfrey and the audience the death of her 2-year-old son, Ryan, in 1999. Duffner,
Ryan and her daughter were hit by a teenager talking on a cell phone while
driving a van. “All I’m asking is for you to change your habits,” she said.
“It’s a small thing to ask. [Talking on a cell phone while driving] has
destroyed my family.”Also in attendance was Donald Peck
Leslie, medical director for the Atlanta-based Shepherd Center, which
specializes in treatment, research and rehabilitation for people with spinal
cord and brain injuries. “[Nearly] 65 percent of our patients are from motor
vehicle injuries,” he told the Ferst Center crowd. “More and more of these are
occurring because of distracted driving. Please think about what you are doing.
[Talking on the phone] while driving is an addiction, but it can be broken.”Immediately following the taping,
Georgia Governor’s Office of Highway Safety Deputy Director Spencer Moore
informed the crowd that the General Assembly had passed a Senate Bill 360,
which effectively bans texting while driving. It has been sent to Governor
Sonny Perdue for his signature.According to statistics from the
National Highway Traffic Safety Commission, nearly 6,000 people died in 2008
due to a distracted driver. Other studies show that the proportion of drivers
reportedly distracted increased from 8 percent in 2004 to 11 percent in 2008. Each
day, more than 800,000 drivers are using a hand-held mobile phone or device
during daylight hours.
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- Workflow Status: Published
- Created By: Robert Nesmith
- Created: 05/05/2010
- Modified By: Fletcher Moore
- Modified: 10/07/2016
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