Text messaging while driving became illegal in California on January 1, 2009 and had just recently become an object of concern in the couple of years prior. The article that best illustrates the construction of deviance of text messaging while driving was an article published in USA Today on June 12, 2007 titled "Stop Text Messaging, Drivers Urged" (Bruno). This article presents an argument in favor of making text messaging while driving illegal by showing that it is dangerous and a wide-spread problem.
The article begins with the presentation of a moral entrepreneur (Becker 1963), New Jersey Assemblyman Paul Moriarty, who is presented as a crusader of public well being in opposition to text messaging while driving. According to Adler and Adler (2009), moral entrepreneurs seek to define the behavior of others as immoral because they perceive them as threats and "feel fearful, distrustful, and suspicious of their behavior" (Adler and Adler 2009:148). This also fits Reinarman's (1994) idea of a "Politico-Moral Entrepreneur" through which he expands on Becker's theory suggesting it is often political elites who hold the position of moral entrepreneur. This is true for Bruno's article as the moral entrepreneur against text messaging while driving is an Assemblyman.
Assemblyman Moriarty calls attention to the dangers of text messaging while driving saying, "These devices are addictive and people are not realizing that their behavior is dangerous," (Bruno 2007). Like in constructing a drug scare, this moral entrepreneur calls attention to a behavior about which "something must be done" (Reinarman 1994:160). In this case, texting while driving is labeled as dangerous. This also can be categorized as "danger messages," one of the three parts of "awareness" in deviant construction (Adler and Adler 2009). Not only does he warn that the behavior of texting while driving is dangerous, but that the devices themselves are addictive, proving Reinarman's (1994) theory that American society is particularly prone to drug scares (or other moral entrepreneurial campaigns) because of the confliction of our history of a temperance culture and mass consumption culture.
To establish a sense of legitimacy and urgency for the campaign, Bruno (2007) includes the testimonials of experts in the article. She includes references to or quotes from Robert Thompson, the director of a pop culture center at Syracuse University, John Taylor, a spokesman for Sprint Nextel, Charlie Klauer, senior researcher at the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, and James Katz, the director of the Center for Mobile Communications at Rutgers University to support the moral entrepreneurial campaign. This strategy of "testimonials of experts" is part of the "awareness" phase of a moral campaign (Adler and Adler 2009) as well as "professional interest groups," of Reinarman's (1994) "seven ingredients for a drug scare" and "experts" in Potter and Potter's "moral panic" (2001). All of these ideas suggest that professionals use their position as someone with expert knowledge to make claims of having a special understanding of the problem and offer a solution. Bruno very strategically frames some of the quotes from experts to present arguments in favor of the campaign. For example, Charlie Klauer of Virginia Tech Transportation Institute is quoted saying that "Research showing whether texting while driving causes accidents won't be available for a few years" but "existing data, however, show driver inattention is the leading factor in most crashes and near-crashes...and texting involves taking a driver's eyes off the road" (Bruno 2007). This shows that there is no real empirical evidence of a problem, but the logic of the argument concludes that texting while driving is a problem by association to other problematic activities.
Like in the film Ecstasy Rising (2004), Bruno (2007) also makes use of "dramatic case examples" (Adler and Adler 2009) or a "kernel of truth" (Reinarman 1994). She wrote, "A 53-year-old male driver checking his e-mail caused a five-car pileup on Interstate 5 outside Seattle in December" (2007). The purpose of this type of example is to "paint a picture of horror in the public's mind, inspiring fear and loathing" (Adler and Adler 2009:149). Also, it provides grounds for the argument, suggesting that the behavior is a problem because cases like this exist (Reinarman 1994).
Statistics are also used throughout the article to provide empirical facts to support the claims. Although in Bruno's article, no statistic directly relates text messaging to car crashes, they aim to show the prominence of text messaging and the rate of crashes caused by activities similar to texting. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found "78% of crashes involved a driver distracted within three seconds before an accident. Talking on or dialing a cell phone accounted for 6% of crashes or near-misses" (Bruno 2007). Even though official statistics have a low validity, they aim to show that instances of the deviant behavior are increasing and they have negative consequences (Adler and Adler 2009).
Many articles present texting while driving as a problem with teenagers, who are often considered deviant. This engages in what Reinarman (1994: 161) describes as "linking a form of drug to a 'dangerous class'" which is "a group of users perceived by the powerful as disreputable, dangerous, or otherwise threatening." The USA Today article, however, assumes this knowledge about teenagers and seeks to portray a different type of culprit. The "dangerous class" Bruno (2007) represents is the "extreme multitasker" and office man. She quotes Robert Thompson of Syracuse University saying "Multitasking has become the norm in busy Americans' lives, and employees sense it could be bad if they're out of touch for an extended period of time." Also, Representative Joyce McDonald is quoted saying, "I was able to use [the accident of the 53-year-old male driver checking his e-mail] and show it wasn't just young people doing this." Per Joyce McDonald's quote, Bruno (2007) acknowledges the dangerous class of "young people," but chooses to focus the discussion on the average American employee, who is not usually seen as dangerous or threatening. This possibly forces readers to see that text-message-induced accidents can happen to anyone, even people like them.
Reinarman (1994) and Adler and Adler (2009) both suggest that a moral entrepreneurial campaign is often used as a scapegoat to cover up real public problems. Moral entrepreneurs are able to blame a problem on "a group of users for a variety of preexisting social ills that are typically only indirectly associated with it" (Reinarman 1994:161). In the case of texting while driving, the real public problems are similar to those Potter and Potter (2001) describe in "The Cyberporn and Child Sexual Predator Moral Panic." While in both cases there is a clear possible danger, the moral panic is not a direct cause of the danger, but a generation gap in the knowledge of new technology. Text messaging, like many other technologies, is first acquired by the younger generations and the older generations are disadvantaged. They fear the unfamiliar and perhaps what this article subtly points out is those that are more familiar with technology will make better employees, making the older generation less capable job candidates. Potter and Potter (2001) describe the moral panic succinctly writing, "These moral panics are forming the base of a new urban mythology about the dangers of the increasing generation gap regarding information technology and computers between today's parents and their children" (2009:182). In essence, the panic about text messaging while driving may be a real fear of quickly evolving technology which the older generation find difficult to keep up with.
This problem is not likely to dissolve any time soon. As the recommends, many states have since passed legislation making text messaging while driving illegal and the media will likely continue to focus on this problem. Because of the true root of this problem, the generation gap of technology, once a new technology develops, focus will likely shift to a panic related to that new technology. Until then, text messaging while driving will be seen as a deviant act that is dangerous and irresponsible.
Works Cited
Adler, Patricia A. and Peter Adler. 2009.
Constructions of Deviace, 6th edition. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Becker, Howard S. 1963. "Relativism: Labeling Theory" Pp. 41-45
In Constructions of Deviace, 6th edition, edited by Patricia and Peter Adler. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Bruno, Laura. 2007. "Stop Text Messaging, Drivers Urged."
USA Today, June 12. Retrieved February 22, 2009. (http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-06-11-dwt_N.htm).
Jennings, Peter. 2004. "Ecstasy Rising."
ABC Primetime Special Edition Retrieved March 2, 2009. (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1564288654365150131).
Potter, Roberto H. and Lyndy A. Potter. 2001. "The Cyberporn and Child Sexual Predator Moral Panic" Pp. 176-183
In Constructions of Deviace, 6th edition, edited by Patricia and Peter Adler. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Reinarman, Craig. 1994. "The Social Construction of Drug Scares" Pp. 155-165
In Constructions of Deviace, 6th edition, edited by Patricia and Peter Adler. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.