Ever scrolled through a news feed and wondered who’s actually pulling the strings? You’re not alone. When you look at the media landscape in 2026, it’s mostly a playground for billionaires and massive, soulless conglomerates. You’ve got the Murdochs, the Bezos types, and corporate boards that care way more about quarterly dividends than the actual truth. But then there’s The Guardian.
People often ask, "Who is the owner of the Guardian newspaper?" expecting a name like Musk or a company like Disney. Honestly, the answer is way weirder—and a lot more interesting—than that.
The Short Version: No One Actually "Owns" It
If you want to get technical, The Guardian is owned by The Scott Trust Limited. But don't let the corporate-sounding name fool you. This isn't your typical company.
Basically, the Scott Trust isn't looking to make a profit for shareholders. In fact, it can't pay out dividends to anyone. Its entire purpose—its "soul," if you will—is to protect the newspaper's editorial independence forever. It’s a self-perpetuating cycle: any money the paper makes gets dumped right back into the journalism.
This setup is pretty much unique in the world of big-league media. While other papers are cutting staff to please investors, The Guardian is basically owned by a giant, protective vault designed to keep the lights on and the reporters reporting, no matter who they offend.
How We Got Here: A Crisis and a Sacrifice
To understand who is the owner of the Guardian newspaper today, you have to look back at a guy named John Russell Scott.
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Back in 1936, the paper (then called the Manchester Guardian) was facing a massive threat: death duties. If the owners died, the tax bill would have been so huge it would have killed the paper. John Scott didn't want the family legacy sold off to some random businessman who might turn it into a political mouthpiece.
So, he did something radical. He gave it away.
He transferred all the shares into a trust. He renounced his own financial interest. Imagine walking away from a massive fortune just to make sure a newspaper could keep telling the truth. That’s the foundation of the Scott Trust. It was built on the idea that the paper should be "carried on as nearly as may be upon the same principles" as it always had been—specifically, the liberal values of C.P. Scott.
The 2026 Reality: A Billion-Pound Shield
Fast forward to now. The trust was turned into a limited company in 2008 (The Scott Trust Limited), but the mission hasn't changed. It’s the sole shareholder of the Guardian Media Group (GMG).
Think of GMG as the "business" side of things. They manage the assets, the digital ads, and the investments. But who watches the watchers? The Scott Trust board.
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Who sits on the board?
It's not a secret club of oil tycoons. As of early 2026, the board is chaired by Ole Jacob Sunde. The rest of the seats are filled by a mix of historians like David Olusoga, legal experts, and even a working journalist from the paper itself. Katharine Viner, the Editor-in-Chief, also has a seat.
It’s a group of people tasked with making sure the bank account stays healthy enough that they never have to beg a billionaire for a bailout. They also manage a massive endowment fund—valued at well over £1 billion—which acts as a rainy-day fund for when the advertising market goes south.
The Big Sale: What Happened to The Observer?
If you've been following the news lately, you might have heard some drama about The Observer, the Sunday sister paper. For years, it was part of the family. However, in late 2024 and early 2025, the Scott Trust made the controversial decision to sell The Observer to Tortoise Media.
This caused a huge stir. Journalists literally walked out in protest.
Critics argued that the Trust was abandoning its mission to protect independent journalism. The Trust’s defense? They claimed they were securing The Observer’s future with a new owner who had the focus and funds to make it thrive, while they doubled down on The Guardian's core digital mission. It was a messy, painful breakup that showed even "unique" ownership models have to make hard, sometimes unpopular, business calls.
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Why This Ownership Matters to You
When you're reading an article about climate change or government corruption, the ownership determines what gets published.
Most papers have a "proprietor's voice." If the owner hates a certain politician, the paper usually does too. Because the owner of the Guardian newspaper is a trust with a mandate for independence, there is no "boss" to call up the editor and tell them to kill a story.
- No Billionaire Whims: No one can use the paper to push their personal business interests.
- Reader-Funded: Over half of their revenue now comes from people like us—readers who chip in a few bucks a month.
- Long-term Thinking: They aren't worried about the stock price dropping next Tuesday. They’re thinking about whether they’ll still be around in 2036.
Actionable Insights: How to Navigate Media Ownership
Knowing who owns your news is like checking the ingredients on a cereal box. It tells you what you’re actually consuming. Here’s what you should do next time you read a major story:
- Check the Masthead: Look for the "About Us" section. If the ownership is buried under three layers of shell companies, be skeptical.
- Follow the Money: Is the paper's revenue coming from ads, a single wealthy donor, or a diverse group of readers? Diversified income usually means more independence.
- Spot the Bias: Every paper has a leaning (The Guardian is famously liberal), but there's a difference between a political leaning and a corporate mandate.
- Support Independence: If you value news that isn't behind a paywall or controlled by a mogul, consider supporting organizations with trust-based or non-profit models.
The ownership of The Guardian isn't just a fun fact for business nerds. It's the reason the paper exists in its current form. Whether you love their reporting or it drives you crazy, the fact that they aren't answerable to a single "owner" makes them a rare beast in a world of corporate consolidation.
Next time someone asks you who owns The Guardian, tell them the truth: it’s owned by its own history and a very large, very protective legal document.