Its name itself is a reference to a newspaper L'homme libre ("The Free Man") which was forced to close by government censorship; Le Canard Enchaîné means "The chained duck", but canard (duck) is also French slang for "newspaper".
The Canard is known for its independence; it does not publish any advertisement and its owners are not tied to any political or economical group.
The Canard focuses on scandals in the governmental and economic circles of France, though it does cover other countries as well. It publishes "insider knowledge" on politicians and "leaks" from administration officials, along with satiricalcartoons and jokes.
The Canard has a left-wing political bias, but is known for publishing incriminating stories and criticizing all political parties with no preference. It is also fairly anti-clerical.
