Alternative states: Regions and postfordism rhetoric on the internet

European regions increasingly develop inter-regional and transnational visions. They not only compete with each other on the basis of traditional location factors (transport, taxes, and labour market) but also by calling up the image of an entirely alternative society which is portrayed as both flexible and capable of self-reproduction. In this article the presence of this (postfordist) discourse is investigated in Web sites of four European regions: Baden-Wurttemberg, Cataluna, Leningrad and Friesland. Baden-Wurttemberg confirms its reputation as one of the most outspoken representatives of the new regional assertiveness. Its rhetoric relies on a mixture of cultural, individual and technological arguments largely neglecting internal geographical variation. Although this type discourse can be easily emulated - irrespective of real world differences in the regimes of accumulation - not all regions seem to have (yet) succumbed to its formula.