How Much Is Too Much?

Image courtesy of Google Images (Germany)

SPIEGELONLINE INTERNATIONAL: A debate is raging in Istanbul about just how much skin advertising billboards should be allowed to show. The dispute highlights the deep divisions between Muslims and secularists in the country. And it may become an election issue.

The model, wearing a scanty bathing suit, leans back against sun-baked stones, her hip jutting playfully to the side. In one photo she even spreads her legs slightly -- suggestively. In a Europe where photos of half naked models staring alluringly out at passers by are simply part of the cityscape, such a billboard would hardly rate a second glance. But in Turkey, the swimwear ads are far from mainstream, and they have triggered a dispute that offers a taste of just what the upcoming general election campaign might be like. Too much skin on Istanbul boards (more) By Annette Grossbongardt

Mark Alexander