It's kind of an open secret that the city of Santa Barbara (CA, US) has banned several forms of public outdoor advertising: we have no billboards, no promotional posters, no taxi toppers... It's delightful, and very high on my list of reasons why I enjoy living here. Every time I leave I'm reminded how noisy space is when it's filled with advertisements. I wholeheartedly recommend others advocate for similar policies in their municipality - it can be done!
I wish we had that on the tube in London. Instead, you ride an escalator and see upwards of 20-maybe 30 video ads on the way. And that's before a marketing firm commissions the redesign of a tunnel so an entire stretch of walkway is 100% ad, like a shitty Disney ride. Or you arrive to one of the big terminals and gigantic screens are blasting even more ads at you. This is, of course, after you spend 40+ minutes on a train that has a continual row of adverts placed just above the eye-level of the person sat in front of you.
Then you look at what the older tube stations looked like and they're quite pretty; lots of mosaics and other works of art, each station having a distinctive style. Now it's white tiles, white LED lights, and adverts.
Lots of places in America have severe restrictions on advertising. Hilton Head, South Carolina; and along the Garden State Parkway in New Jersey leap to mind. I think along some of the toll roads in Houston this is also true (It's been a while, I might be remembering that wrong).
Billboards are banned in downtown Chicago, so big companies rent storefronts in tourist areas and put in stores that are not supposed to make money, just to be billboards for their brand.
Hawaii has a similar ban in place too. It's so nice not being bombarded by billboards in your day-to-day life. Definitely one of the things I've missed since moving from there.
Taxi toppers are an interesting one to ban - I suppose the city can simply refuse to license taxis that refuse to sign a contract agreeing to not use toppers but any advertisement on a private not otherwise restricted vehicle would be the providence of the state DMV - possibly... I'm not certain how a lawsuit would come down trying to determine if vehicle appearance could be restricted by a state or if that right was withheld by the federal government.
With rare exceptions (mostly help-wanted signs and signs for candidates for local offices before elections) the only outdoor advertising in Marin County, CA, is on the buses, the bus shelters -- but only the shelters near highway 101 -- and retail locations advertising stuff sold there. I.e., vastly less outdoor advertising than most of the US.
Bit of a hijack but are you still working? I’ve been in LA for 15 years and the plan is to move to SB once we no longer need to work. I love everything about the area (I just did a 5 personal retreat at Lake Cachuma) but job optionality is low.
I’ll be back on Saturday and can’t wait for the peace, calm and beauty.
thats nice. They prbly have a good tax base that doesn't need this extra revenue stream. property tax is decent enough revenue where median home is > 1 mil.
> I enjoy living here
Yea its a given that its nice to live where people earn more and live in expensive homes :D
The first time I started thinking about it that way was when I bought a book featuring a selection of Banksy's works [0]. In the opening pages it had a quote of him, making pretty much that point:
The public space is ours. It's not their for corporations. It's to be enjoyed by the people and if you want to come in with your hands full of money to make something else of it you can fuck right off. He's a true artist.
I don't see any need or moral justification for push advertising, i.e. showing advertising to people who are not looking for a certain service or product. Fine to have directories for services and products that people are actively looking for and thus choose to actively view. Not fine to push advertising on people who are not actively looking for any such services and products. I would very happily support a ban on advertising in all public spaces.
I think in the near future we'll have empirical evidence that most ads are malicious exploits of flaws in human psychology.
Ideally, all ads should be plain text listing of facts. Pictures only allowed for demonstrative purposes. And they should be listed in "Ad sections", like a phone book.
These are all true statements (the first one is subjective, I'll admit), but I suspect that many believe the effect of plain test listing of facts would only allow the third statement.
> Pictures only allowed for demonstrative purposes.
Wouldn't a photo of someone drinking a Coke and enjoying it be allowed under this rule?
The movie “The Invention of Lying”, where everyone tells the truth (as lying hasn’t been ‘invented’) has an example of this. “Please drink Coca Cola. It’s basically just brown sugar water.”
They didn't used to be flaws. They used to be cognitive shortcuts that helped people make decisions quickly with incomplete information.
Then John B. Watson and the study of behaviorism came along in the early 20th century. Persuasion techniques were systematically identified and studied, and with the advent of mass media (TV, radio, internet), the cognitive shortcuts meant for neighbors and friends (tribe members) to persuade each other became flaws to abuse on a massive scale for profit and political power.
I think it's well recognized by anyone who is interested in this stuff that persuasion techniques are an abuse of human psychology. Cialdini's books are perhaps the most famous. Everyone merely tells themselves, "other people are doing it, and their products or ideas are worse, so we have to."
For those who haven't been to Paris, there's moving/jittering electronic signs everywhere like something out of Minority Report. They're a distracting eyesore and should be banned.
Compared to most global city I've seen (NYC, Amsterdam, Zurich, German cities, Tokyo, Singapour, Bankgok, London...) I'd say Paris is of the least 'technological' kind.
It's actually so distinct that as a nerd I just don't feel 'home' in France, architecturally, culturally, compared to most comparable countries/cities on any continent. France feels somewhat stuck in time, which you may not be able to tell looking at all the smartphones and 1Gb fiber, but could glimpse at by talking with enough locals: they just don't like / trust / see value in high-tech in general, more like a threat / disturbance / forced upon them). Again, this is the feeling, the mindset, not 'reality' or 'objective truth' (the French are the same as everyone else in this regard, obviously; I'm talking about perceptions here, like the fact that the French are the most pessimistic on Earth despite their incredible relative wealth (less than 1% of the world's population for 3.25% GDP) and quality of life (GINI, whatever).
It's great that Paris and the French exists for those who'd rather live in a more 'vintage' environment (this can be said for a lot of European small/mid cities btw), but subjectively, France is everything but high-tech or 'nerdy' compared to Germany, UK, USA, Japan (probably topping it all), Korea, basically the world's top 10-15-20 countries (GDP per capita). Even Switzerland, which is very old-school in a lot of ways, feels more "21st century" than France in day-to-day living.
But also most of the billboards are ads for cultural events, theatre, city-organised events, museums etc. I quite like that actually, where else would I find about some shows or things to do.
Good on them. In Los Angeles, the tonier the neighborhood the fewer the billboards. The savagery of monster electronic signage and visual barrage increases substantially as one goes into the less affluent locations.
There was an iPhone ad draped over the Louvre a few months ago. I was shocked that the parisians of all people would debase themselves for Tim cook like that.
Anyone who has taken the NYC Subway understands this sentiment. The only way to avoid them is to completely close your eyes and wish you were somewhere else.
Good on these guys. The French also are massive exporters of this garbage - Sydney is lousy with billboards inflicted on us by JC Decaux.
Amusingly enough, the JC Decaux trucks are entirely festooned with Australian flags, which is a totally conventional for a 100% French company to use as visual elements and not deceptive at all.
A general sentiment I see here is that ads should be banned, but what can be done in the US? The First Amendment protects truthful advertisements. In addition, we have the FTC for misleading and lying ads (although their success is not what it should be (case in point: OutBrain and Taboola)). So, what do we do?
I look forward to the mainstream catching up to seeing advertising like second-hand smoke: harmful enough to others to ban based on widespread democratic support.
My wife did her PhD in out-of-home media (which very much included billboards).
I have yet to find a more rabid opponent to out-of-home advertising (in general) and billboards (in particular), and she will explain why it is evil at the drop of the proverbial hat...
As an amateur artist she will start with visual pollution and then veer into psychological damage... /grin
This is great. For website owners, magazines etc. it's sorta their choice to "pollute" their pages with ads, but out in the world you're polluting the commons, where people have little choice in the matter. It depletes people's ability to have a clear head & freely focus their attention.
In Lyon the public ad space was traded to an ad company in exchange for funding and maintaining the city's public bike share scheme. It's a trade off, of course, but for just 30 euros à year I (and the rest of the city) get virtually unlimited bike share.
The anti-ad groups here would be happy for the public ads to disappear but it would be a real shame if the affordable bike share went with it.
FWIW there is a real debate about who got the better side of the deal between the city and the ad company, but the Velov scheme is great. :)
They wouldn't buy the advertising if they couldn't make a profit on your attention. Pay with brain space, or pay through a tax. Which is more expensive?
Bit of a crypto-tangent: more than anything else, the hope of replacing advertising as the economic engine of the Internet is why I care about the cryptocurrency space. In most cases, I think crypto is a solution looking for a problem, but the capability to trade edge compute/memory/disk/network for an ad free Internet experience would be immeasurably good for our collective mental health.
Ads are disruptive. They allow new businesses to break into markets owned by old dominant suppliers. This way they keep the market healthy and serving consumers.
Based on that, you'd expect anti-ad initiatives to be aligned with powerful established industries. Not that I know how to confirm or refute that.
Ads allow whomever has the deepest pockets to dominate the public's attention. Incumbents will have more money to spend, chilling the influence of new competitors. Most of the "disruptor" success stories that come to mind started with some variation of "we didn't spend anything on advertising, relying on word of mouth."
If your product is good, it can break into markets by word of mouth. You ignore the fact that incumbents can easily pay for advertising out of economic rents they collect, and do.
Ads can be disruptive, but they are also frequently deceptive and simplistic, not to mention distracting. I loathe the industry with a white-hot passion.
> They allow new businesses to break into markets owned by old dominant suppliers.
Tesla broke into the automotive market - one of the most resistant markets to new entries - without doing any advertising. (Tesla does do marketing but it doesn't do advertising).
Genuinely new and innovative products and services generate their own buzz. They don't need to advertise. Meanwhile the old dominant suppliers often run advertising campaigns that pretend that their new product offering is revolutionary or innovative when it's nearly always just a gimmick or some old product that's been 'futured' up.
Meanwhile, there are resources available for people who are stuck in areas of high visual pollution, which require only a small investment in tools and mindfulness of personal safety.
[+] [-] q845712|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ljm|6 years ago|reply
Then you look at what the older tube stations looked like and they're quite pretty; lots of mosaics and other works of art, each station having a distinctive style. Now it's white tiles, white LED lights, and adverts.
[+] [-] reaperducer|6 years ago|reply
Billboards are banned in downtown Chicago, so big companies rent storefronts in tourist areas and put in stores that are not supposed to make money, just to be billboards for their brand.
[+] [-] Twirrim|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] munk-a|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jacquesm|6 years ago|reply
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cidade_Limpa
[+] [-] alexfromapex|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] frank2|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] theNJR|6 years ago|reply
I’ll be back on Saturday and can’t wait for the peace, calm and beauty.
[+] [-] dominotw|6 years ago|reply
> I enjoy living here
Yea its a given that its nice to live where people earn more and live in expensive homes :D
[+] [-] mr_custard|6 years ago|reply
It's visual pollution and it has ruined our towns and cities. I'm excited to read this article and see that people are taking a stand.
[+] [-] Joe-Z|6 years ago|reply
The public space is ours. It's not their for corporations. It's to be enjoyed by the people and if you want to come in with your hands full of money to make something else of it you can fuck right off. He's a true artist.
[0] https://www.amazon.com/Wall-Piece-Banksy/dp/1844137872
[+] [-] oska|6 years ago|reply
I don't see any need or moral justification for push advertising, i.e. showing advertising to people who are not looking for a certain service or product. Fine to have directories for services and products that people are actively looking for and thus choose to actively view. Not fine to push advertising on people who are not actively looking for any such services and products. I would very happily support a ban on advertising in all public spaces.
[+] [-] msla|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ajna91|6 years ago|reply
Ideally, all ads should be plain text listing of facts. Pictures only allowed for demonstrative purposes. And they should be listed in "Ad sections", like a phone book.
[+] [-] sosborn|6 years ago|reply
Coca-Cola tastes great!
Coca-Cola gives you an extra pep in your step!
Coca-Cola will rot you teeth!
These are all true statements (the first one is subjective, I'll admit), but I suspect that many believe the effect of plain test listing of facts would only allow the third statement.
> Pictures only allowed for demonstrative purposes.
Wouldn't a photo of someone drinking a Coke and enjoying it be allowed under this rule?
[+] [-] wincy|6 years ago|reply
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fhtTU-guW60
[+] [-] harshreality|6 years ago|reply
Then John B. Watson and the study of behaviorism came along in the early 20th century. Persuasion techniques were systematically identified and studied, and with the advent of mass media (TV, radio, internet), the cognitive shortcuts meant for neighbors and friends (tribe members) to persuade each other became flaws to abuse on a massive scale for profit and political power.
I think it's well recognized by anyone who is interested in this stuff that persuasion techniques are an abuse of human psychology. Cialdini's books are perhaps the most famous. Everyone merely tells themselves, "other people are doing it, and their products or ideas are worse, so we have to."
[+] [-] unknown|6 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] CalRobert|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] 99chrisbard|6 years ago|reply
Public advertising is company sponsored graffiti; http://www.stuartmcmillen.com/comic/litter-on-a-stick/
[+] [-] redis_mlc|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] K0SM0S|6 years ago|reply
It's actually so distinct that as a nerd I just don't feel 'home' in France, architecturally, culturally, compared to most comparable countries/cities on any continent. France feels somewhat stuck in time, which you may not be able to tell looking at all the smartphones and 1Gb fiber, but could glimpse at by talking with enough locals: they just don't like / trust / see value in high-tech in general, more like a threat / disturbance / forced upon them). Again, this is the feeling, the mindset, not 'reality' or 'objective truth' (the French are the same as everyone else in this regard, obviously; I'm talking about perceptions here, like the fact that the French are the most pessimistic on Earth despite their incredible relative wealth (less than 1% of the world's population for 3.25% GDP) and quality of life (GINI, whatever).
It's great that Paris and the French exists for those who'd rather live in a more 'vintage' environment (this can be said for a lot of European small/mid cities btw), but subjectively, France is everything but high-tech or 'nerdy' compared to Germany, UK, USA, Japan (probably topping it all), Korea, basically the world's top 10-15-20 countries (GDP per capita). Even Switzerland, which is very old-school in a lot of ways, feels more "21st century" than France in day-to-day living.
[+] [-] jeffrallen|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] notaregular|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] 7sigma|6 years ago|reply
(minor nitpick: should be "la pub")
[+] [-] OldGuyInTheClub|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] djohnston|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pastor_elm|6 years ago|reply
Anyone who has taken the NYC Subway understands this sentiment. The only way to avoid them is to completely close your eyes and wish you were somewhere else.
[+] [-] glangdale|6 years ago|reply
Amusingly enough, the JC Decaux trucks are entirely festooned with Australian flags, which is a totally conventional for a 100% French company to use as visual elements and not deceptive at all.
[+] [-] colejohnson66|6 years ago|reply
Further reading on the 1st Amendment and advertising: http://www.lawpublish.com/amend1.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Hudson_Gas_%26_Electri...
[+] [-] spodek|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jabofh|6 years ago|reply
I have yet to find a more rabid opponent to out-of-home advertising (in general) and billboards (in particular), and she will explain why it is evil at the drop of the proverbial hat...
As an amateur artist she will start with visual pollution and then veer into psychological damage... /grin
[+] [-] QuadrupleA|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] docdeek|6 years ago|reply
The anti-ad groups here would be happy for the public ads to disappear but it would be a real shame if the affordable bike share went with it.
FWIW there is a real debate about who got the better side of the deal between the city and the ad company, but the Velov scheme is great. :)
[+] [-] magwa101|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] basicplus2|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] adenverd|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] BurningFrog|6 years ago|reply
Ads are disruptive. They allow new businesses to break into markets owned by old dominant suppliers. This way they keep the market healthy and serving consumers.
Based on that, you'd expect anti-ad initiatives to be aligned with powerful established industries. Not that I know how to confirm or refute that.
[+] [-] lordlic|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] anigbrowl|6 years ago|reply
Ads can be disruptive, but they are also frequently deceptive and simplistic, not to mention distracting. I loathe the industry with a white-hot passion.
[+] [-] oska|6 years ago|reply
Tesla broke into the automotive market - one of the most resistant markets to new entries - without doing any advertising. (Tesla does do marketing but it doesn't do advertising).
Genuinely new and innovative products and services generate their own buzz. They don't need to advertise. Meanwhile the old dominant suppliers often run advertising campaigns that pretend that their new product offering is revolutionary or innovative when it's nearly always just a gimmick or some old product that's been 'futured' up.
[+] [-] criddell|6 years ago|reply
[+] [-] anigbrowl|6 years ago|reply
http://brandalism.ch/take-action/ http://www.billboardliberation.com/ArtAndScience-BLF.pdf http://www.billboardliberation.com/
[+] [-] idclip|6 years ago|reply
I hope germany learns from france, this is great news and very inspiring
[+] [-] unknown|6 years ago|reply
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