Watch out for ABC journalists on the road! According to AAA, the most dangerous thing you can do while driving is to talk to another person in the car. Yet, that's exactly what Nightline reporter Linzie Janis did as she reported on the new study. While barreling down the road, Janis talked to Robert Sinclair Jr. of AAA. (He was in the passenger seat and the journalist drove.)
She wondered, "The biggest distraction may come as a surprise. What was the most common?" Sinclair responded, "The most common was talking to somebody in the vehicle, exactly what we're doing." At various points in the segment, Janis can be seen looking directly at Sinclair – again, as she drove.
Despite this, anchor Dan Harris piously lectured viewers: "This is a warning not only for parents but for anybody who gets behind the wheel." Presumably, that includes those at ABC, too.
During January's New England blizzard, MSNBC journalist Rehema Ellis drove the snowy roads of Massachusetts, while reporting live. She repeatedly turned to the camera and, at times, took her hands off the wheel.
In 2007, Matt Lauer chided then-New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine for not wearing a seat belt while driving. A few weeks later, he was caught interviewing Mitt Romney live on Today, in a car and not wearing a seat belt.
Also in 2007, Today's Jonathan Alter went on a drive with then-Democratic presidential candidate Mike Gravel behind the wheel. Gravel proceeded to crash into a taxi.
Watch out for reporters on the road!
A partial transcript is below:
Nightline
3/26/1512:39
HARRIS: But we do move on now to the new video tonight with the graphic illustration of the combustible mix of teenagers, cars, and distraction. This is a warning not only for parents but for anybody who gets behind the wheel. And here's ABC's Linzie Janis.
LINZIE JANIS: Watch as this teen, distracted by her phone for roughly six seconds, loses control and careens off the road. And this teen, one hand on the phone, another on the wheel just seconds before colliding with another car. Here's another playing deejay before running off the road. And another chatting to her friend, then plowing into the car in front of her.
...
JANIS: These shocking videos are all part of an unprecedented look at the number one killer of American teenagers, car crashes. In the most comprehensive research of its kind, the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety analyzed nearly 1,700 accident videos, finding distraction a factor in nearly 60% of crashes. That's four times the previous estimates based on police reports.
...
JANIS: The biggest distraction may come as a surprise. [While driving and glancing to passenger.] What was the most common?
ROBERT SINCLAIR JR. (MEDIA RELATIONS MANAGER AAA NEW YORK)
The most common was talking to somebody in the vehicle, exactly what we're doing.
