Yes, this is real. And yes, I am thirteen. The South Dakota Department of Public Safety -tee hee-- pulled -- tee hee -- its new public service campaign encouraging drivers not to jerk the steering wheel on icy roads after people complained that the ad contained double entendres. In other words, it was guilty of being written by a Copy Wanker, to use Dabitch's phrase.
The best part? It was intentional. According to the Argus Leader:
That public safety campaign, intended to raise awareness about the dangers of jerking the steering wheel on icy roads, played on the double meaning of the word "jerk," which can also be a euphemism for masturbation. Officials admitted to the Argus Leader that the double entendre was intentional.
"The message is that we'd prefer drivers keep their cars out of the ditch and their minds out of the gutter," said Lee Axdahl, director of the office of Highway Safety.
According to one of the strategists at Lawrence & Schiller who developed the campaign, Micah Aberson, the ads were intended for younger males. In other words, precisely the people who would notice and appreciate the message. Too bad. According to the Washington Post the Don't Jerk and Drive website, contained some memorable lines like "Think before you jerk," and "Jerking isn't a joke."
Thankfully the stuffed shirts in South Dakota didn't yank it in time. The Argus Leader said the ad was seen by 16,000 people on Twitter in the first week, which is nearly double the population of South Dakota. The campaign in just one week outperformed previous public safety campaigns 25 to 1. I'll just bet it did.
Don't worry, though. One of their videos is still full of innuendo. You can get your hands on it here.