WSJ.com: Digital Signs Energize Old Fights Over Billboards

Debates over electronic signs around the world have now arrived in San Diego, which is considering allowing interactive kiosks on its streets. By Megan Graham, TheWallstreetJournal.com. 
​A series of disputes over digital signs has arrived in sunny San Diego, where critics say a longstanding strict stance on new billboards is now under pressure from a proposal to allow outdoor digital kiosks.
The city council’s economic development committee last month voted in favor of bringing the proposal to the full city council, clearing the way for it to vote on the question, which it is expected to do in May. A 1981 U.S. Supreme Court ruling permitted the city to ban any new billboards that don’t meet certain standards, though those built before then are still standing. “It’s a Trojan horse,” said Lisa Ross, chair of the Sierra Club’s San Diego Chapter, an environmental advocacy group that opposes the proposal. “We think they’re putting revenue ahead of the best interest of the public.” ​​

Digital billboards stand out in a time when many other forms of advertising can be skipped, blocked or avoided through technology. Critics say that’s a bad thing. “When you’re driving by a billboard on a public road, you do not have a choice in terms of being exposed to that visual blight, or when you live in a neighborhood that has a digital billboard, you don’t have a choice in terms of being exposed to that visual blight,” said Mark Falzone, president of Scenic America, a group that says it seeks to preserve and enhance the beauty of the U.S. Read the full article online at TheWallstreetJournal.com.