The "Don't Jerk And Drive" Ad Has Been Yanked

Okay, so we all know you should never drink and drive; and we’ve all seen the ads out now that say you shouldn’t text and drive. But, out there in South Dakota, they apparently had a different kinda problem with driving and so they created a … wait for it … it’s amazing … Don’t Jerk and Drive campaign.

And so they pulled … for lack of a better word, or at least a more punny word … the ad because, well, masturbation.

Here’s the statement from Trevor Jones, Secretary, S.D. Dept. Of Public Safety [DPS]:

I decided to pull the ad. This is an important safety message and I don't want this innuendo to distract from our goal to save lives on the road.

Innuendo? Is that code for something else South Dakotans are doing on the road when they aren’t jerking?

The PSAs, which appeared on billboards around the state, were supposed to "grab the attention of drivers" about the dangers of navigating snowy roads. The Office of Highway Safety took a whack at double entendre to spark interest in the campaign, but it rubbed a lot of folks the wrong way, and so the ad was yanked.

Just like you wouldn’t want young male drivers to “adjust the antenna” while driving.

Just like you wouldn’t want young male drivers to “blow their own horn” while driving.

Just like you wouldn’t want young male drivers to “clean their rifle” while driving.

A stroke of genius, I might add.

Congressman Mike Verchio, a Republican who chairs the House Transportation Committee, said he heard from several citizens who were upset about the ad … especially the social media hashtag #DontJerkAndDrive.

Ya think?

More than 16,000 people saw the campaign on Twitter in its first week, and page views at the DPS's Facebook page jumped to over 30,000 since the campaign launched, outperforming previous public safety campaigns 25 to 1.

Cuz, you know, the whole jerking thing.

So the ad was pulled, and pulled and pulled from every single site it was on. You'd think South Dakotans would be against "choking the chicken" while driving, but it appears they are far more open-minded than previously thought. 

So the ad is gone; no more sticky PR mess to clean up.

source