In 2007, the world’s fourth-largest metropolis and Brazil’s most important city, São Paulo, became the first city outside of the communist world to put into effect a radical, near-complete ban on outdoor advertising. Known on one hand for being the country’s slick commercial capital and on the other for its extreme gang violence and crushing poverty, São Paulo’s “Lei Cidade Limpa” or Clean City Law was an unexpected success, owing largely to the singular determination of the city’s conservative mayor, Gilberto Kassab.

Tony de MarcoAs the driving force behind the measure, mayor Kassab quelled the rebellion from the advertising industry with the help of key allies amongst the city’s elite. On many occasions, Kassab made the point that he has nothing against advertising in and of itself, but rather with its excess. He explained,

“The Clean City Law came from a necessity to combat pollution . . . pollution of water, sound, air, and the visual. We decided that we should start combating pollution with the most conspicuous sector – visual pollution.”

Since then, billboards, outdoor video screens and ads on buses have been eliminated at breakneck speed. Even pamphleteering in public spaces has been made illegal, and strict new regulations have drastically reduced the allowable size of storefront signage. Nearly $8 million in fines were issued to cleanse São Paulo of the blight on its landscape.

One sore loser in the battle was Clear Channel Communications. Having recently entered the Brazilian market, the corporation was purchasing a Brazilian subsidiary as well as the rights to a large share of the city’s billboard market. Weeks before the ban took effect, Clear Channel launched a counter-campaign in support of outdoor ads, with desperate slogans that failed to resonate with the masses: “There’s a new movie on all the billboards – what billboards? Outdoor media is culture.”

Although legal challenges from businesses have left a handful of billboards standing, the city, now stripped of its 15,000 billboards, resembles a battlefield strewn with blank marquees, partially torn-down frames and hastily painted-over storefront facades. While it’s unclear whether this cleanup can be replicated in other cities around the world, it has so far been a success in São Paulo: surveys indicate that the measure is extremely popular with the city’s residents, with more than 70 percent approval.

Though materialism and consumerism, along with gang violence will continue to pollute the city of São Paulo, these human dramas may at least begin to unfold against a more pleasant visual backdrop.

– David Evan Harris

 

---

 

On The Media’s Bob Garfield interviewed Vinicius Galvao, a reporter for Folha de São Paulo, Brazil’s largest newspaper, about São Paulo’s ban on visual pollution.

Tony de MarcoBob Garfield: I’ve seen photos of the city, and it’s amazing to see this sprawling metropolis completely devoid of signage, completely devoid of logos and bright lights and so forth. What did São Paulo look like up until the ban took place?

Vinicius Galvao: São Paulo’s a very vertical city. That makes it very frenetic. You couldn’t even realize the architecture of the old buildings, because all the buildings, all the houses were just covered with billboards and logos and propaganda. And there was no criteria.

And now it’s amazing. They uncovered a lot of problems the city had that we never realized. For example, there are some favelas, which are the shantytowns. I wrote a big story in my newspaper today that in a lot of parts of the city we never realized there was a big shantytown. People were shocked because they never saw that before, just because there were a lot of billboards covering the area.

BG: No writer could have [laughing] come up with a more vivid metaphor. What else has been discovered as the scales have fallen off of the city’s eyes?

VG: São Paulo’s just like New York. It’s a very international city. We have the Japanese neighborhood, we have the Korean neighborhood, we have the Italian neighborhood and in the Korean neighborhood, they have a lot of small manufacturers, these Korean businessmen. They hire illegal labor from Bolivian immigrants.

And there was a lot of billboards in front of these manufacturers’ shops.And when they uncovered, we could see through the window a lot of Bolivian people like sleeping and working at the same place. They earn money, just enough for food. So it’s a lot of social problem that was uncovered where the city was shocked at this news.

Tony de MarcoBG: I want to ask you about the cultural life of the city, because, like them or not, billboards and logos and bright lights create some of the vibrancy that a city has to offer. Isn’t it weird walking through the streets with all of those images just absent?

VG: No. It’s weird, because you get lost, so you don’t have any references any more. That’s what I realized as a citizen. My reference was a big Panasonic billboard. But now my reference is art deco building that was covered through this Panasonic. So you start getting new references in the city. The city’s got now new language, a new identity.

BG: Well, cleaning up the city’s all well and good, but how do businesses announce to the public that they’re open for business?

VG: That was the first response the shop owners found for this law, because the law bans billboards and also even the windows should be clean. Big banks, like Citibank, and big stores, like Dolce & Gabbana, they started painting themselves with very strong colors, like yellow, red, deep blue, and creating like visual patterns to associate the brand to that pattern or to that color.

For example, Citibank’s color is blue. They’re painting the building in very strong blue so people can see that from far away and they can make an association with that deep blue and Citibank.

Tony de MarcoBG: Now, the city has said, having undertaken this effort, it will eventually create zones where some outdoor advertising will be permitted. Do you expect São Paulo eventually to just revert to its previous clutter?

VG: Not to revert to previous clutter, but I think like very specific zones, I think they’re going to isolate the electronic billboards in those areas, in the financial center. I don’t think they should put those in residential areas as we had before.

BG: Now, the advertising industry is obviously not happy about this. They’re complaining that they’re deprived of free speech and that it’s costing them jobs and revenue. But is there anyone else in São Paulo who’s unhappy about this? Tell me about the public at large. What’s their view?

VG: It’s amazing, because people on the streets are strongly supporting that. The owner of the buildings, even if they have to renovate a building, they’re strongly supporting that. It’s a massive campaign to improve the city. The advertisers, they complain, but they’re agreeing with the ban. What they say is that we should have created criteria for that to organize the chaos.

BG: Vinicius, thank you very much for joining us.

VG: Thank you so much.

BG: Vinicius Galvao is a reporter for Folha de São Paulo.

Excerpted from “NPR’s On the Media” from WNYC Radio.

COMMENTS:

Remove the 100% tax deduction for advertising expenses in the US and watch the clutter disappear...
rmd

Aha, yes... clever way to gradually outlaw all forms of public expression. First, start with the businessmen, under the guise of it's too tacky. But, where does it stop? Also, how is this affecting small business owners, who start a new storefront business... but now can't let passersby even know their business exists there, or what they do?
Jacob

I think it is incredible to completely change the outside landscape of a city in such a fashion. There are days when I lock myself in the bathroom in my bath with a candle as the only light and just breathe – there are certain days when i feel absolutely bombarded and overstimulated by the media, fast food, the healthcare industry joke.. even participating a lot less now than i ever did before. More pollution needs to be removed from this world, all over it.
Aleytys I.

The video link from David was wrong here is the correct one. It's a great clip! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1Nmnv0Ospg
Seth

COOL!!! ad excess definitely is an unspoken societal cancer. on the other hand I'm in full support of graffiti artists and whatever they may create, so... we'll see how this plays out. funny enough, i was just now attempting to make a comment about ideology having to find a compromise along with it's opposite... only to find that there is no dictionary antonym for either ideology, or theory. This is to say that any sort of nirvana state suggested by Buddha and the like is...unattainable? in this physical world. fuck, especially if one ever intends on using the dictionary. it's good to be alive, even and perhaps especially during this cage match fantasy of a reality. KEEP UP YOUR THING ADBUSTERS!
Dashiell House

"advertising should not make profits, prophets should make advertising." well said masuko. and yeah, the stifling of pamphleteering (something with which i wholeheartedly disagree) grassroots should be plenty allowed.
Dashiell

It's wrong and offensive to call São Paolo, please, change it to the right name São Paulo. Thanks.
Claudio Barroso

I wish Chicago would do this. All those advertisements, especially in some places downtown, are so ugly.
M

excellent article. please come Bangkok – the city is vertically challenged and the billboards are taking over.
johannes lindgren

Brazil is not communist, on the same token, federal green new world tactic's are communist. Freemarket capitalism, Advocates of 'ethical consumption' and consumer activism believe the capitalist myth that freemarkets ensure that production conforms to freely made consumer choices. Any such strategy is bound to fail and result in continued injustice. Nice Try. To foster open dialogue I'm required by law to fuck you proper. It's amazing, because people on the streets are strongly supporting that. Fuck you!
guido

I think it is amazing that their mayor and supporters had the guts to do this. I mean yes, businesses are probably very upset, but what's more important: having billboards and electronic signs block out the moon and stars so that they can further consumerism in this world or pointing out the big dipper to a child for the first time? I think that we've become extremely dependent on clearcut signs to show us our way that we have forgotten our natural instinct to figure out where we need to go, and what our intuitions tell us what we NEED to buy (NOT what we WANT to buy), from simply viewing a billboard that is flashing some inviting material. Just one more thing we don't really need, just one more cheeseburger our health isn't actually craving, just one more, just one more, just one more. Just STOP. If America followed the outlines of this ban even at 50%, I would bet that the over-eating wouldn't be as prominent, that over-purchasing wouldn't be a big a problem for a large percentage of the population, and that people would remember what it means to rely on yourself to get what you want and MAKE UP YOUR OWN MIND INSTEAD OF A SIGN PUSHING YOU TOWARDS ONE MORE THING WE REALLY DON'T NEED.
court

about time! :) ahaha
emily

how is it offensive to misspell são paulo?
john

what the fuck...
tj

i think its gr8 seeing a city make a change. if only australia wud do it. i guess govts are makin too much money from tax by advertisement that they dont wanna stop it.how much beta wud all our cities look without advertisement??
andrew

Very interesting... Where I live, though we don't have many billboards there are with chicks practically nothing, to advertise for something that is advertising for clothing or something, firstly kids plus adults don't need to see things like that on the side of a shop, i mean come on! I must say i think it is a brilliant idea to take them down and remove them...
Hils

I lived in Sao Paulo for 6 months, and I really have to say I am amazed about what I read in this article. I have never seen so many signs, billboards and graffiti anywhere else. Not Mexico City, Boston, New York, London... anywhere. I remember how tired my eyes were the first day I got to Sao Paulo and drove the hour from Guarulhos airport to Avenida Paulista. That really was the first thing I noticed. Now hopefully they can do something about all that crappy diamond-shaped graffiti that is on every building above and below every window.
James Vigliotti

Maybe, just maybe, some well-thought-out laws about signage rather than just a simplistic blanket ban would have worked just as well, rather than some heavy-handed draconian banning of signs would have been the sensible middle ground instead.
Marcus

WOW! who would've thought! But I totally support the ban of all outdoor advertising...it's just too much.
Smiddy

I am curious about the ban on pamphlets. Does this mean people passing out adverts in public space or is it also a crime to distribute political/ artistic literature in public spaces? If that is the case, I can see why conservatives propose this measure and businesses reluctantly accept it.
Bakunin

time for graffiti
daxe

wtf?
Christina

wow! im really amazed! i had no idea that this could even happen! but i think it's amazing that it did happen, coz the media has definitely become more and more outrageous over the years! i hope that São Paulo has started a continuing trend!
Jess

Sao Paulo is a haven for graf artists, and when assholes from clear channel think that the dollar speaks louder than words, they need to think again. I am glad to see real democracy flourish in latin america, being from the US, where the corporate media choke hold still has people is a haze, i am NVS. Anyways, advertising should not make profits, prophets should make advertising.
Masuko

anyone know what all that empty space is going to be filled with?
tommy

Thanks all for your comments! If you're looking for more details, I have a video piece on youtube on the same subject under PanSouthProductions. Excellent juicy footage of my encounter with the mayor. http://www.youtube.com/watch?vU1Nmnv0Ospg
David

I'm brazilian. And I have been following this initiative in São Paulo for some time. Most of the big cities here have a problem with billboards, so it's great that our biggest city to do something like this. It's a very good example for other cities here and around the world. The outdoor advertising in my homecity (Belo Horizonte) are already causing me headaches...
André Versiani

"Outdoor media is culture." Not! This could only be said by someone who doesn't know anything about culture. Good for Sao Paulo!
Archie

Mike: São Paulo (11 mln. inhabitants) is bigger than London – and not called Rio...
Senyi V.

The city's name is São Paulo, with an U. The first story and cover page need to be corrected. Thks
Mario A.

Fdx, brutal!!! boa onda contracultura!!!
Director Denial

Hey Mike, What's your point? That you only think the west and far east are overdeveloped? Advertising for profit is worldwide, notice the note about Clear Channel's involvement in the article. It may be news to you and others, but most of the world's largest cities are in India, China, Singapore and other developing countries. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, for example, has advertising billboards, search images for kuala lumpur billboard to see for yourself. Also, a couple errors in your post: 1. It's São Paulo, not Rio de Janeiro that the story is about. 2. São Paulo is the world's fourth largest city, either as a city proper, or a metropolitan area. Tokyo and New York as proper cities are 12 and 13. London barely weighs in at #25. For more info: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Listofmetropolitanareasbypopulation
Rabble Rouser

Advertising serves as graphic masturbation for companies. Street Art serves as graphic masturbation for artists. It's a sad day when we presume there's a distinction.
sad

has anybody profited from this decision? is some company making a lot of money with a newer technology of advertisement that is not included in the ban?
Connor

communism.
Russ

I must say, I'm totally for this idea of advertisement elimination. It decreases skyglow around cities, saves energy, beautifies cities.... The list could grow and grow. Is not having tv, radio, internet, storefronts... enough, when do we say it's enough. I like looking at the stars and I only know of one place in Seattle I can see them. It's nice to live in a city, but please did you know the effects of advertising are wearing off? CocaCola did some studies on subliminal advertising back in the 50's or 60's with movie framework. Finding out someone on average had to see an add for an object 60-something times before wanting it. Nowadays, it's up to the 600-something range. I would feel bad for the loss of jobs however I do believe they could put that money elsewhere. Maybe increase the quantity of art in cities (pay the muralists, painters, sculptures, rejuvenate the history of our precious cities). Keep the billboards limited to X on each block and only allow them in properly zoned commercial areas. I hate having all of those party flyers everywhere. Keep the advertisement in the local papers.
one bad jesus

Now they should get rid of the garbage, construction debris, graffiti, potholes and trucks that do a lot to make the city dirtier. And maybe close down Congonhas CGH, the busy and risky domestic airport.
Dan

That's very brave.... i can just imagine how hard it must have been to do such a thing.... but i was born there so i'm proud of my hometown...
Victor

great place to start. now let's see if others step up and do the responsible thing like they have....
dani

I'm pretty antimodernism – especially when it's a part of modernism that will rot someone's mind away. And, as much as I despise advertising and the commercial market, having strong restrictions against advertising is not representing a free market. Lines need to be drawn to a certain extent. Obviously if advertisers are at people's doorsteps it's a problem.
Rosie Walunas

I really always hated going to big cities mostly because of all the signs and billboards, but this is just amazing. A whole city, a very big one at that, working to make this into a reality and now other cities have started to join. It makes me feel better about the human race.
Charlotte D.

The first progress at the modern world! At last a small part of a big picture.
Manolo V.

Bravo Rio...but it would take a city on the scale of New York, London, or Tokyo to have similar laws to really put an end to advertising for profit.
Mike Smith

Incredible. I wish I could travel to work without being bombarded and assaulted by advertisements. I am not against advertising in general, but like most things in our society, we become obsessed with profits and don't consider the consequences. Sao Paulo will probably have to strike a better balance eventually, but I am so proud of the people who made this decision. It at least acknowledges that advertising does NOT beautify, and it cheapens everything. As for new businesses not being able to advertise their business, maybe I would have a better chance of seeing the grass roots, non-chain stores if the huge chain store signage just wasn't obscuring everything else.
tamar

I am also reminded of a short video I quite randomly came across approximately 10 years ago, editing a video of a main street in a main city in the United States...It was like a breath of fresh air.
tamar

what a beautiful sight it must be – and (god forbid) imagine what this freedom from Bullshit does to the freedoms of the people's minds... south america is really a very exciting prospect....when is berlin getting it .... furthermore people may start speaking to each other on the Underground or buses and exchange tips, stories and experiences rather than watch our latest form of polluting advertising: TVs on PUBLIC TRANSPORT!!!
valentin muthers

thanks for setting a good example, sao paulo. i think this decision shows responsibility and leadership. i'll turn on the television if i want to see a commercial.
fugue

"Though materialism and consumerism, along with gang violence will continue to pollute the city of São Paulo, these human dramas may at least begin to unfold against a more pleasant visual backdrop." Interesting phrase to end on. So, by this does that mean that the sprawling gang violence and massive favelas are a bit more tolerable because there isn't a CocaCola sign in the vicinity?
N.H.

I think it's a great start to clean things up. Some would say the heavy-handed ban is too much and that they should have been more flexible but that never would have worked because people would have found loopholes. Doing it this way gives people a chance to experience the clutter-free landscape. In the interview it says there will be places to advertise eventually. Doing it this way allows the people to understand what it is they would be giving up if they allowed clutter to reign supreme. I think it's brilliant.
G

This is a wonderful story. I do not have a problem with free advertising in general, but where it is done is an issue. Billboards bother me more than any other form of advertising. The reason being that you cannot choose to avoid them. It is forced on you like no other form of ad media. I can switch off the TV, the radio, I can choose not to read magazines etc. but I cannot walk around the streets with my eyes closed. Billboards offer no choice but to see them. For this reason they are a powerful tool to the marketeer, but in my opinion, the term, 'visual pollution' hits the mark exactly. Let's clean the streets of this menace.
bboyben

This sounds great except for one thing. How does this effect the right of protest? No signs or pamphlets makes for a pretty limited protest, doesn't it?
D351

Many cities here in Brazil are adopting this law, now...
Thiago C.

Ok? That's cool and all for rio, but this would never fly in the states. Simply put advertising pays for a lot of the luxuries we have. By companies advertising on the side of buses and on billboards in subway stations it pays for stuff like repairs, fuel, more extensive transit systems, lower cost of usage and any and all other expenses. So my thoughts are that in a country like brazil maybe this can better the community but here this is just simply not the case.
Russ

No advertisements?! It's my paradise!! This is by far the most awesome idea ever thought up... I love it! I wish it could work in the states.
Nathalie

They should use the empty banner to put the faces of every politician and corrupted cop who's stealing everyone's money in Brazil.
M.

i just visited S.P and i think this is a very positive move....maybe London could follow suit
Tom

If only Branson, Missouri, listened to this article...
L.

I agree with G. The total ban is just what is needed. Anything middle ground would instantly be filled with legal issues and complications. And Tommy – the empty space doesn't have to be filled with anything. Let the space be enjoyed and as Galvao said, new points of reference will form. And perhaps most importantly, people will start noticing each other more.
Alex

This makes me smile, such a wise move. Props to Brazil.
Jason

Yeah they suggested doing this in the Auckland CBD and businesses put up new billboards with sad faces and captions saying I can change. Some of those ads are hilarious and what's wrong with a supersize supermodel propping up a building. Guess it depends on the quality of the architecture eh....
Greg

I'd like to see this radical movement spread across the rest of the western, consumerist nations. It's just one less setting the par, the status quo, if you will, for a working class that struggle with problems like depression and ADD, and any other stress related problems. What I'm trying to say is what a lot of you have said and it's this, This is a positive step in cleaning up OUR planet. Amen.
Mark

Well my friends, I'm journalist in Brazil, living in São Paulo, and I use to write only about the media and ad industry here to the magazine where I work (by the way, I wrote more than one turn about AdBusters here). And, yes, Cidade Limpa (Clean City) is a great idea indeed, even when we realize that the mayor, Mr. Kassab, just did that thinking about the next city halls elections, aiming to promote himself. Anyway, there's lots of empty billboards around the city, like a big gang of capitalist ghosts, hehe, but we still have lots and lots of outdoor advertising through the whole city. Not only commercial ads, but also dozens of religious messages – just remember that evanglicos, a kind of arm from the Protestant & Luterans, are quite big and strong in Brazil. So don't you think that outdoor ad is gone in São Paulo. There's lots of judicial proccess confrontating the city hall and the outdoor ad companies; hundreds of billboards exhibiting advertising supported by lawyers actions; maybe thousands of empty billboards waiting to be removed; and so on... And please: no one is lost here because that bright ad isn't there anymore; ad isn't so powerful; I could never be oriented in a city thanks to an ad! Advertising changes every day, even if hides the architecture. Cidade Limpa is a great idea, all the facades are getting smaller and smaller thanks God, but definitely didn't exterminate outdoor advertising in São Paulo.
Alisson Avila

John, could sound rough say it's offensive, but this is not a blog or discussion page, this is an article in a magazine. The minimal expected is RIGHT information. I feel offended by the reporter's disregard toward other country and language to not even spend 30 seconds checking, in Wikipedia for example, the right spell. It's like Time magazine write an article about Vancoover. How some Kanadians will feel like?
Claudio

Fantastic. It should be an idea copied worldwide. Also, schools should educate children about why it's not great to be walking billboards, unless they feel passionately that Nike or Adidas is actually worth more than the body they plaster it all over.
Jenny

I wish Popeye's chicken could still advertise in Brazil. Yummers!!!;
wilbur

Yes, they should give the empty areas to artists or pay people to place their art in the vacated ad spaces. If they would select art to go up every month or so, it would be more attractive and create it's own culture as well as strengthen and provide a voice for the arts community as well as for anyone who wants to be heard. This would then provide an alternative to joining gangs and other activities harmful to society.
Galen

Claudio, if you are going to whine so much about spelling at least use correct grammer. It's obvious English is your second language. Move on.
Claudio

It's far easier to make big business the bad guys and take down billboards, than actually deal with real issues. I have a feeling that gang violence, overcrowding and poverty are far bigger issues in Sao Paulo than billboards. I also have an inkling that a billboard has never killed anyone unless it fell on them. This ban does have major economic repercussions for smaller businesses trying to get the word out ironically these were probably the ones using illegal signs and mostly responsible for visual pollution. Most importantly, what about the free speech issues that have been brought up in previous posts. It's hard to equate an pamphlet handed out, with a billboard. But this ban easily crushes speech that should be protected. We need to stop giving leaders and politicians, in any country, accolades for avoiding serious issues by making pointless gestures. It looks like a dramatic change has been made, and this has given mayor Kassab tons of free publicity apparently advertising of this form is still allowed but in reality he has done nothing to make the city a safer better place to live. All he's really done is cut many sources of revenue for business and the city, and probably lost some people their jobs I believe this makes it worse place to live. Lastly think of that ad be it a poster, billboard or some other form that made you smile during your commute one dreary Monday morning. That's the point of advertising and that's really what your banning.
Arthur

Increased planning and regulation of excessive or illegal outdoor advertising would have made much more sense. It appears that even a company, like Recycled Eco Green Earth Widgets Inc., can't have a photo voltaic powered low light sign up on its own building. Despite this ban being insane from a free speech perspective, as a designer, I see it raising some interesting design solutions to the problem. Color, hopefully legal, is one work around. If your company uses yellow, immediately paint yellow where you can. Would it be illegal to pay or gift someone to paint the side of their building yellow? I would think not. Patterns too. If you painted yellow and red patterns, of different types, in different locations, it would be hard to make that illegal. Especially if the patterns were from the culture, history, local events, etc. What about a mural or a work of art? What if musicians wandered the city playing songs of love about Ikea? Worse: loudspeakers doing the same. The more I think about it, this law could totally backfire with much more intrusion into the urban landscape and intrusion of commercial activity into traditionally non commercial cultural activities. At least billboards change once in a while.
Joe

"hmmmm it's another day and i don't have plans for today. I have to wake up and bush my teeth with colgate and wash my face with neutrogena or estee lauder???..then take a shower...I use victoria secret organic shower gel.....then, o shit and i don't know what jeans to wear..lee, levi's or diesel...hmmmm I'd rather levi's because I love its last commercial its cool wearing levis hahaha then and a chanel blouse, i'm going to put on gucci perfume and l'oreal make up with sunscreen...ok whatever now i'm prepared for cleaning the backyard ohh i forgot my versace sunglasses hahahaha..." — Paris Hilton
aurora

i live and i think it great because they are trying to stop the pollution and stop wasting paper... so with no more advertisement, there won't be so much cutting trees to make paper.
kata

Yes, let's ban everything because we can't rely on ourselves to ignore it or stop using it.
Brett

Joe – Yes, color has begun to be used as a way to signal commerce; for example, Citibank branches have begun to paint their storefronts more ostentatiously blue in line with their color scheme. Patterns and bold architectural moves have also become more common as you suggested, particularly on So Paulo's Rodeo Drive, Rua Oscar Freire. An article in the Folha de So Paulo discusses this. Claudio I just want to clarify that as the author of the piece and a São Paulo resident for nearly 3 years, the spelling error was not mine, but erroneously corrected by the magazine's editors to the "ao" spelling. That said, you do seem to be overreacting a bit. N.H. Glad the line caught your eye. Yes, the intention was irony there. Thanks to others for your thoughtful comments.
David

In my town in Texas it's a disgrace. The whole North Dallas area is littered with it. All of America is, really. I'm waiting for Microsoft or McDonalds to hang a banner across trees in the redwood forests or something. I truly wish we would do this.
Justin Hearst

I live in NYC and I think without the advertisement nyc would be half as interesting...Outdoor billboards often act as demographic indicators on local neighborhoods. Take these away and you are left with a city devoid of signs.
Cathrine

Like everything else, where's the happy medium? The problem isn't adverts, the problem is their contents. I'm sure this would be a very wonderful kind of place, but the solution is probably more 'restrict content'. Especially the whole shop fronts thing, that's quite despicable. If they are advertising, fairly and unimposingly what they do and how you can get it, can any of you give me one good reason to ban that?
J Bob

aloha – how about the island nation refered to as Hawaii – neva have ads foreva
charly brown

Hawaii has a ban on all outside adverts.
Travis

I just have one thing to say: my eyes hurt a lot less right now! Sampa City all the way! :D
Cabeade Ovo

nia we represtn the planet git sxhophreinin an panic maybe the past would understand it / theory / flowy / berry / crow terrorist
ck1

ad free or ad monopoly?
boris

I have forwarded this article to lots of people. Including my schools marketing newspaper. I hope others will read it that way and consider the excess of advertising in our city Toronto.
Ian B

i was shocked when i read this article but i agree with it totally there is way to much media in the world telling us what we want when we don't even need any of it
D.l

It's a great idea. I'm sick of being sold to from all angles. Advertisers are like vultures trying to pick our wallets and sense of identity at every bend in the road.
Lauren

after stripping Sao Paulo of their ads, wouldnt Sao Paulo also become an 'advertisement' for others? that it had become this antiad country? it'll just invite more talk and tourist to the country. Is that another hidden persuader ad?
jerlle

It's certainly could be more fair, but it's really amazing to see my clean Sao Paulo...
Maia

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