Who Actually Owns The Guardian? The Unique Trust Behind the News

When you read The Guardian, you’re not just reading a newspaper. You’re reading a news organization built to resist being bought, sold, or silenced. Unlike most major media outlets owned by billionaires or public shareholders, The Guardian doesn’t have an owner in the traditional sense. It’s owned by a trust - and that trust was created for one reason: to protect journalism from profit-driven interference.

The Scott Trust: A Shield for Journalism

The Guardian is owned by the Scott Trust Limited, a nonprofit entity established in 1936. It wasn’t created to make money. It was created to make sure The Guardian could keep reporting the truth - even when it cost money. The trust was named after C.P. Scott, the paper’s longtime editor who famously said, “Comment is free, but facts are sacred.”

Today, the Scott Trust owns the Guardian Media Group (GMG), which in turn owns Guardian News & Media Limited - the company that publishes TheGuardian.com and the print newspaper. There are no shareholders. No private investors. No corporate parent. All profits from The Guardian’s operations go back into funding journalism, not into bank accounts of owners.

This structure is rare. In fact, it’s almost unique among major global news organizations. Most newspapers today are owned by conglomerates like News Corp, or billionaires like Jeff Bezos (who owns The Washington Post). Those owners can - and sometimes do - influence editorial direction. The Scott Trust was designed to prevent that.

How the Trust Keeps the Lights On

The Scott Trust isn’t just a legal formality. It’s a financial engine. As of April 2023, its endowment fund was worth £1.24 billion. That money comes from decades of reinvested profits, donations, and careful financial management. The trust uses this fund to support the newspaper when advertising and subscriptions aren’t enough.

But here’s the twist: the trust doesn’t want to rely on its endowment forever. In fact, it’s been trying to reduce that dependence. Why? Because if the trust’s money runs out, the newspaper’s independence could be at risk. So the goal now is to make The Guardian financially self-sustaining through readers - not wealthy benefactors.

That shift started in earnest after 2015, when the paper was nearly bankrupt. Print revenue was collapsing. Digital ads weren’t paying enough. Then came the pivot: ask readers to pay. Not just for subscriptions, but for memberships, donations, and recurring contributions. Today, reader revenue makes up about 64% of The Guardian’s total income - up from less than 20% a decade ago.

This isn’t charity. It’s a business model built on trust. Readers believe in the journalism. They pay because they want it to survive. And it’s working - at least in some places.

Guardian Australia: The Success Story

While The Guardian’s global operations still run at a cash loss, one part of the business has broken through: Guardian Australia. Since launching in 2013, it’s become profitable. How? By focusing on local reporting, building a strong digital audience, and creating membership programs that resonate with Australians.

Australia’s media landscape is dominated by Google and Meta, which together control about 70% of digital ad spending. Most newsrooms there have struggled. But Guardian Australia didn’t chase ads. It chased readers. And it succeeded. Its managing director, Rebecca Costello, says the key was transparency: telling readers exactly how their money was being used, and showing them the impact of their support.

This model is now being replicated in the U.S. The Guardian has hired 150-200 new staff in America since 2023, expanding its Washington and New York bureaus. It’s not just translating UK stories - it’s producing original American journalism. The goal? To build a reader base in the U.S. that can help fund the entire organization.

The Observer Sale and the Backlash

Not everything has gone smoothly. In December 2024, the Scott Trust announced it was selling The Observer, the UK’s oldest Sunday newspaper, to Tortoise Media, a digital news startup. The deal closed two weeks later.

The sale wasn’t just a business decision. It was a shock to the newsroom. Journalists at The Guardian staged a 48-hour strike. They held protests. They passed a vote of no confidence in the Scott Trust. Many felt betrayed. The Observer wasn’t just a paper - it was part of the family. Selling it felt like giving up on a core mission.

But the trust defended the move. The Observer had been losing money for years. Keeping it alive was draining resources needed to protect The Guardian’s core operations. As part of the deal, the Scott Trust kept a “significant stock position” in Tortoise Media - meaning it still has a stake in its future. The sale price wasn’t disclosed, but the trust said the move would help secure The Guardian’s long-term independence.

Still, the backlash revealed a tension inside the organization: how far should the trust go to protect itself? Is selling a historic paper worth it if it means saving the main brand? There’s no easy answer.

Why This Matters Beyond the UK

The Guardian’s ownership model matters because it’s a counterpoint to the global media crisis. In the UK, just five companies control 70% of the newspaper market. In the U.S., a handful of billionaires own most major outlets. In both places, journalism is becoming more about profit than public service.

The Scott Trust is different. It’s not trying to maximize returns. It’s trying to maximize truth. That’s why it’s been called the last great experiment in independent journalism. It’s not perfect. It’s not always profitable. But it’s still here - and still fighting.

When Google and Meta took 59% of the UK’s online advertising revenue in 2024 - totaling over £24 billion - The Guardian didn’t beg for scraps. It asked readers to step up. And they did.

The Future of Independent News

The Guardian isn’t out of the woods. Global newsrooms are shrinking. Trust in media is low. Political pressure is rising. But the Scott Trust has survived wars, recessions, and digital revolutions. It’s still standing because it never pretended to be a business. It always pretended to be a public good.

Its biggest challenge now? Scaling its reader-funded model without losing its soul. Can it grow its U.S. audience fast enough? Can it keep journalists motivated when the work is hard and the pay isn’t always great? Can it resist the pressure to chase clicks, outrage, or viral content?

So who owns The Guardian? Not a billionaire. Not a corporation. Not a hedge fund.

It’s owned by the people who believe in it - and by a trust that’s been guarding that belief for nearly 90 years.