The NNC mediates complaints and issues decisions on allegations of breaches of journalistic standards.

Even in cases where there is no evidence of a breach of journalistic standards, readers may still have questions about a journalistic issue. Part of what we do at the NNC is to provide explanations to those questions.

The following include the decisions and explanations that the NNC has provided in response to reader concerns.

Full decisions issued by the NNC can be found here.

• Update from the Complaints Desk – October 26, 2023
• Update from the Complaints Desk: To name or not to name?
• Update from the Complaints Desk – September 14, 2023
• Update from the Complaints Desk: Use of term ‘book ban’ appropriate in light of campaign to defund libraries in rural Manitoba community
• Update from the Complaints Desk: Breaking through allegations of ‘bias’
• Update from the Complaints Desk: The importance of editorial discretion
• Update from the Complaints Desk: A snapshot of complaints about published images
• Update from the Complaints Desk – July 14, 2022
• Update from the Complaints Desk – May 5, 2022
• Update from the NNC’s complaints desk: March 24, 2022
• Update from the NNC’s complaints desk: February 17, 2022
• ‘Mother trucker’, our email just exploded!
• Oh editor, where art thou?
• What happens when editorial choices surrounding a story about divisiveness and lack of empathy are subject to the same criticism?
• Balancing competing views, listening to readers, and exercising editorial judgement
• Complaints we heard: Concerns about reporting on COVID-19 vaccines reaches fevered pace
• Complaints we heard: Freedom of expression or misinformation?
• Complaints we heard: There’s more to the story than just its headline
• Complaints we heard: Moderating comments
• Complaints we heard: Reader concerned about ‘bias’ in analytical article
• Complaints we heard: Calgary Herald announces that syndicated cartoon will no longer be published
• Reader outraged, but columnist correct to make social commentary
• Reader objected to newspaper’s endorsement of candidate
• ‘Who are you calling dumb?’ – Nov 14 2019
• What we heard: Mental Health Awareness Week reminds us of another way that words matter
• FYI Complaints We Heard: Explanatory journalism – July 9, 2019
• FYI Complaints We Heard: Distinguishing sponsored content from news – June 26, 2019
• FYI Complaints We Heard: News vs advertising – May 1, 2019
• FYI Complaints We Heard: Photo of tragic event, editorials and letters to the editor – April 11, 2019
• NNC’s by-laws approved