Patrick Allemand starts a blog

First Vice-President of the Regional Council and General Councillor, Patrick Allemand has just inaugurated his blog.

One more virtual space for someone who already has a website www.patrickallemand.com and who positions himself as one of the contenders for the left-wing candidacy in the upcoming Nice municipal elections.

But what is a blog?

Historically, the first blogs consisted of lists of commented links. Then various types of “personal journals” published on the Web appeared.

Created by “ordinary” Internet users, they consisted of articles written according to the mood of the moment, sometimes relating to the private lives of their authors, or their reactions to their environment (discovery of new sites, reflections on international current events or the evolution of the Internet…).

Some are very close to the notion of “personal diaries,” sometimes illustrated with photos, and only talk about the life – sometimes private – of their authors. Others are simply daily successions of chosen external links, with little or no commentary.

Still others, on the contrary, tell long stories over the days, with few external links. Many allow reactions to the published content, and even to each individual post published, creating a sort of permanent forum.

Patrick Allemand, why create a blog?

Simply because we must keep up with the times, because doing politics today means using all vectors of communication, and especially those that are interactive, which allow for exchanges, or even debates.

I also wanted to show, at a time when elected officials don’t necessarily have a good reputation, the range of areas we intervene in, and their consequences on the daily life of a citizen.

How does it work?

Very simply. I try to post a message daily and hope to stay the course. I also try to systematically respond to comments, as long as they remain courteous, and I have not implemented a moderation system (which would allow only comments I approve to appear). That said, I will delete any intervention that would be illegal, or crude, or that would compromise individuals for who they are.

What subjects do you address?

All those related to my duties, according to my activities and local news, but beyond that, any subject that has particularly caught my interest or touched me. It is not an instrument of propaganda, simply an illustration of what the life of an elected official and socialist leader is like and a way of giving my opinion on the problems affecting our citizens.

Is this a first step towards a candidacy in the upcoming municipal elections?

No more, nor less for that matter, than my other activities.

How do you judge the internet in Nice and the French Riviera?

It is evolving very quickly, as is French and international internet. Overall, it seems to me to be of good quality, and we contribute to it through the Region by developing high-speed broadband and ERICs (public spaces for Internet access). There are also local sites of excellent quality – Nice-Première is proof of this! That said, we all need to make efforts to reduce the digital divide and allow everyone satisfactory access to online services. There is much talk of equal opportunities at the moment. Internet is a wonderful tool for knowledge and progress, but if it is not completely democratized it can become another instrument of exclusion.

The Nice City Hall website is translated neither into English nor into Italian. What do you think about this?

In my opinion, this is a shortcoming. More generally, there should be a “tourists” section alongside a “residents” section and more interactivity, allowing anyone to share their comments.

What would be your solutions to improve the regional web landscape?
Above all, to bring together users and professionals to consider with them the main improvements to be made and the ways and means to achieve them. More broadly, I believe we need to think deeply about the concept of a “digital city” and seriously develop all its functions. This is about the attractiveness and future of our city.

Visit Patrick Allemand’s Blog.