Sprint Partners with ‘The Oprah Winfrey Show’ and DoSomething.org on Nationwide Driver Safety Campaigns

OVERLAND PARK, Kan.--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--Five years after creating a free interactive program – Focus on Driving – to educate teenagers on the dangers of driver distraction, Sprint (NYSE:S) is expanding its mission to support two nationwide programs that educate teenagers and adults of all ages on the importance of safe driving in today's wireless world.

“With texting while driving making today’s teens four times more likely to cause a car crash, we hope initiatives such as these will help wireless users take an active role in making driver safety an obligation, not an afterthought.”

With support from Sprint, “The Oprah Winfrey Show” and DoSomething.org have created initiatives to educate wireless users on how safe driving habits can protect themselves, their passengers and others on the roads:

• “The Oprah Winfrey Show” “No Phone Zone” Campaign: Created in January 2010, Sprint is sponsoring the “No Phone Zone” campaign’s continued efforts, which include a new public service announcement running on-air, in print and online. In addition, the “Oprah” show hosted its first national “No Phone Zone” Day on April 30 to help put an end to distracted driving. “No Phone Zone” Day included a live episode of “The Oprah Winfrey Show” and viewing rallies in Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. in a large-scale effort to honor victims of distracted driving, educate the public about the dangers of distracted driving, and activate Americans to make a difference in their communities. Sprint provided support for "No Phone Zone” Day and in the coming months will continue to spread the "No Phone Zone" message.
• DoSomething.org and Thumb Wars: Launched on April 19, Thumb Wars is a nationwide campaign to educate drivers between the age of 16 and 25 on the dangers of texting while driving and to encourage them to make others aware of this important issue. With support from the Sprint Foundation, DoSomething.org has a goal of engaging and educating more than 100,000 young drivers through the Thumb Wars campaign by the close of summer. The campaign features a PSA with Joel McHale and Ken Jeong from NBC’s Community engaging in a Thumb War. Additionally, young people can order Thumb Socks, which prevent them and their friends from texting and driving, and enter a bumper sticker design contest, all through the ThumbWars.org site. Thumb socks cannot be bought. Young people can order them by sharing how they plan to use them to spread the word about not texting while driving.

“At Sprint, we believe that education is an effective means to encourage wireless consumers to practice safe driving habits,” said Ralph Reid, vice president of Corporate Social Responsibility for Sprint. “With texting while driving making today’s teens four times more likely to cause a car crash, we hope initiatives such as these will help wireless users take an active role in making driver safety an obligation, not an afterthought.”

Sprint customers can show their support for “The Oprah Winfrey Show” “No Phone Zone” campaign by downloading the Oprah Mobile application on any of Sprint’s Android^TM and Blackberry^®,Palm Pre^TM and Palm Pixi^TM devices, or by texting “NPZ” to 30644 to take the “No Phone Zone” pledge. Standard text message and data rates may apply.

DoSomething.org and Sprint have also compiled a list of driver safety tips that parents and teens can utilize to practice safe driving behavior. To learn more about Sprint’s efforts to educate drivers of all ages on the importance of safe driving, visit the Sprint Focus on Driving Web site.

About Sprint Nextel

Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 48 million customers at the end of the first quarter of 2010 and is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, and the first and only wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile and Assurance Wireless and instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. With its customer-focused strategy, you can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.facebook.com/sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint.

About the Sprint Foundation

Since its establishment in 1989, the Sprint Foundation has provided more than $110 million to community organizations across the country with a special emphasis on those supporting K-12 education, positive youth development, arts and culture outreach, and Internet safety. Through direct grants and a robust matching-gifts program for employees and retirees, the Sprint Foundation creatively and thoughtfully delivers Sprint’s commitment to championing the communities where Sprint customers and employees live.