Now they're putting digital advertising on the sides of city buses.
A moving Times Square, the bus with its big TV shouts:
Heineken!
Denzel Washington!
John Travolta!
Snickers!
The frantic, twittering panel splashes a blue streak against everything it passes. Makes the stainless-steel backs of coffee carts and fruit peddler carts turn televisual. Blasts Cemusa's glass shelters and newsstands.
The city of reflective surfaces was built for this. Ads screaming back at themselves, multiplying.
Repeating and repeating:
Heineken!
Denzel Washington!
John Travolta!
Snickers!
On donut shops, bodegas, and empty storefronts still for rent.
Heineken!
Heineken!
Heineken!
The rushing, hustling television turns eyeglass lenses blue, too, blanking out the faces.
And the faces turn. All the eyes turn to look.
They can't help but to stare at the bus going by. They were lost in thought--good thought, troubling thought, thought that puzzles out a problem, writes a novel, crafts an apology or confrontation--it doesn't matter.
Thought is not welcome here. Don't even try.
14 comments:
I just saw this the other day.
one more step toward the "bladerunnering" of NYC.
Just now give me Pris and I'll be very happy.
Um, Snickers? Mind your Snacklish, sir. Do you need help with your Snackabulary? Did you get a degree in Snackanomics?
Anyway, were you going to the Peanutarium in the bus?
And, yes — I feel as if I'm going to have a seizure looking at these digital bus ads.
Ads on the insides of our eyelids soon enough.
Good poem in your commentary!
Flashing TV screens on buses? Big Brother's mind control has finally taken over.
Must put on thought control blocking sunglasses.
Must put on thought control blocking sunglasses.
Must put on thoug.......
(Eyes now glazed over) Wow, it's so pretty....
will all buses be retro-fitted with this junk?
definitely seizure inducing..
Noooooooo! BN
Max Headroom, anyone?
Wow-totally cool
Just one more thing that makes NY unique...i think it's pretty cool.
Just one more thing that makes NY unique...i think it's pretty cool.
June 11, 2009 10:14 PM
Uh, the point is that it "does not" make NYC unique to look like Hong Kong, where I'm sure this idea was created and is in use today.
We have some in Chicago too: http://archives.chicagotribune.com/2008/sep/23/local/chi-cta-bus-digital-23-sep23
I agree that it is neither cool nor unique. And I also agree that it is seizure-inducing.
- Former New Yorker
Heineken? Travolta? All I can see is "CONFORM", "CONSUME", "OBEY" and "NO INDEPENDENT THOUGHT"
;)
I think this kind of thing is going to become a lot more prominent since it's now cheaper to advertise digitally than traditionally. Advertisers are pretty much waiting for companies (public transportation, in this case) to upgrade to this type of thing.
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