"Cities are branding themselves into predictably unique products"

Market forces are pushing cities towards a shallow and Instagram-friendly impression of authenticity that makes everywhere feel the same, writes David A Banks.If you've started traveling again since the pandemic, you may have noticed something unsettling. Maybe you detected it before the lockdown too. Everywhere looks the same, even as each city proclaims louder than ever that they are unique and different.
Cities and neighborhoods are branding themselves into predictably unique products. Nothin