The Northern Writ is an editorial journalism project that holds Canadian politicians and institutions accountable through sourced, cited reporting. We document the gap between what governments promise and what they deliver — at every level, from every party.
We are not affiliated with any political party, government body, media corporation, or advocacy organization. We receive no public funding, no government grants, and no corporate sponsorships. Our only obligation is to the factual record.
Every factual statement in every article links to a verifiable source — government documents, parliamentary records, official data, or credible reporting.
We hold Liberal, Conservative, NDP, and provincial governments equally accountable. The record does not have a party affiliation.
We place the promise and the reality side by side. The reader draws the conclusion. We don't tell you what to think — we show you what happened.
Every article publishes its full source list. If you disagree with our interpretation, you can read the same documents we did and decide for yourself.
Every article begins with research — not a narrative. We start with the politician's exact words: their campaign promise, their policy announcement, their public statement. We document it with a date and a source. Then we document the current reality with the same precision.
We search government records, parliamentary transcripts, Parliamentary Budget Officer reports, Access to Information documents, and credible Canadian reporting. We look for the contradiction — the gap between what was said and what was done. Then we present both sides and let the record speak.
We aim for 8 to 18 sources per article. We target 800 to 1,000 words per piece — enough to document the facts, not so much that we bury them. Every article is designed to be read in five minutes or less.
The Northern Writ is produced by a small, independent editorial team based in Canada. We are journalists, researchers, and citizens who believe that accountability journalism should not be the exclusive domain of large media corporations or partisan outlets.
We do not accept anonymous sources without corroboration. We do not publish rumour. We do not editorialize beyond what the documented record supports. And when we get something wrong, we correct it publicly and promptly.
Have a story we should investigate?
If you have documents, data, or firsthand knowledge of a contradiction between what a government promised and what it delivered, we want to hear from you.
Submit a Tip →Every source. Every contradiction. Yours to share.