When the Ontario government announced that it would amalgamate the City of Ottawa with several surrounding cities, the language status of the new municipality quickly led to a debate. The principal arguments put forward to justify or refute the establishment of a language planning framework recognizing the presence of Francophones was published in local newspapers like Le Droit and the Ottawa Citizen. By selecting the articles and letters of opinion that were published and interpreting social issues and events that took place for their readers, they fueled the debate. After analyzing the content published in both newspapers between 1999 and 2001, we argue that Le Droit acted as an advocate and facilitator for the Francophone community, while the Ottawa Citizen was used, by Anglophones and Francophones alike, to exchange views and opinions.