Why Pamela Anderson Says She Won’t Use Uber
Don’t expect Pamela Anderson to be using her fame to endorse Uber or any other app-based, ride-hailing service any time soon.
The former “Baywatch” beauty is out with a new public service announcement (PSA) called “The Driving Game!” that slams the ride-hailing industry. As an homage to the classic TV game show, “The Dating Game,” Anderson plays a passenger grilling three male contestants vying to drive her home, and — given the slew of Uber and Lyft drivers who’ve been accused of rape, murder, and other crimes across the country — you can understand why the two identified only as “Ride Hail App Drivers” come off as something akin to dates from hell.
“Have you ever been drug tested?” Pam asks the sleaziest of three.
“No, what kind of drug should I be testing?” he smirks.
Ouch.
The video is part of the “Ride Responsibly” campaign launched last year by the nonprofit National Limousine Association (NLA) —with whom the National Sexual Violence Resource Center teamed up for the PSA — that seeks to overcome the Ubers of the world’s resistance to subjecting their drivers to the same rigorous criminal background checks as those behind the wheels of taxis and limos. “That includes spending the extra money to fingerprint their drivers,” says NLA President Gary Buffo.
For Pam, though, the safety issue is also extremely personal.
In 2014, during the Cannes Film Festival, she publicly revealed having been both raped at age 12 and “molested from age 6 to 10 by my female babysitter.”
“I went to a friend’s boyfriend’s house, and when she was busy, the boyfriend’s older brother decided he would teach me backgammon, which led to a back massage, which led to rape,” the Associated Press quoted her as saying at the time. “My first heterosexual experience. He was 25 years old, I was 12.”
As for the video, which continues to rack up views on YouTube, Anderson winds up choosing Driver No. 3 (a.k.a. “Not a Ride-Hail App Driver”), who assures her that he’s licensed and screened, and considers Pam’s safety “my top priority.”
Having thus found her dream date — that is, dream driver — Pam closes with this parting message: “Be safe. Think before you app.”