ELECTRONIC BILLBOARD: ITS INFLUENCE ON PUBLIC SPACE
A Thesis
Presented to
The Faculty of the Department
of Television, Radio, Film and Theatre
San Jose State University
In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree
Master of Arts
by
Kyung Lee
May 2004
ABSTRACT
ELECTRONIC BILLBOARD: ITS INFLUENCE ON PUBLIC SPACE
By Kyung Lee
As an outdoor advertising medium, the electronic billboard, which is a combination of a billboard and television, has been emerging. However, little research has been done concerning the medium. Using multiple methodological approaches, this thesis investigates the influence of the electronic billboard on public space. Initially, it explores the space-altering characteristic of the electronic billboard by examining billboards and television respectively in terms of their relationships with environments. Secondly, it conducted observational research in Times Square, New York, and Shibuya, Tokyo, and recorded the phenomenon of electronic billboards. The information and data gathered from this research are discussed ethnographically and analyzed using typology. Research on this subject reveals that the electronic billboard makes its location placeless by delivering messages which are not relevant to its geographical origin. In the larger context of urbanization, the electronic billboard represents a birth of antigeographical place.
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