The Globe and Mail, Canada's largest newspaper, has announced the appointment of its first ombudsman.

As Craig Silverman reported for Poynter, citing an internal memo from the paper's editor-in-chief John Stackhouse, Sylvia Stead will be the first Globe and Mail public editor, starting on January 23rd.

Stead is currently an associate editor and has been with the paper for many years, serving in a variety of roles from national to executive editor.

"The creation of this position is a major step for the Globe to make us more transparent and accountable to our readers, and to continue to build our most important asset -- credibility -- in the Canadian market," Stackhouse wrote in the memo reported by Poynter.

Newspapers' conduct has recently come under scrutiny as the rapid changes that technology is making possible and some recent bad behaviour by the media - the UK phone-hacking scandal to name just the most famous example - are posing extra challenges to press credibility.

Accountability is a key concern for newspapers on an ethical level but also on a more profane business one: readers buy newspapers they trust and recognise as a credible and legitimate source of news.