UK (Commonwealth) _ An agreement to sell the Observer, a Sunday newspaper established in 1791, to Tortoise Media has been accepted, according to the Guardian’s owner.
On Friday morning, the boards of the companies that own it, Scott Trust and the Guardian Media Group, made it public. The action came after journalists at the daily and its sister magazine, the Guardian, went on strike for 48 hours this week.
Founded five years ago, Tortoise Media focuses on longer-term journalism rather than breaking news and has its own website and podcast.
Former US ambassador to the UK Matthew Barzun and former BBC and Times executive James Harding operate the business. The startup plans to invest £25 million in the paper and has a number of well-known investors, including tech investor Saul Klein and Nando’s executive Leslie Perlman.
Speaking following the announcement of the sale, Harding expressed his excitement and honor at the possibility of collaborating with them to revive the Observer.
He went on to say that he pledges to its readers that we will do everything in our power to uphold its legacy as a champion of human dignity and to revitalize it as a strong, forward-thinking voice in the world.
Concerned about what might happen to the newspaper under a new owner, journalists at the Guardian and the Observer went on strike on Wednesday and Thursday.
“Our members are concerned about the next chapter in the history of the 233-year-old newspaper, which holds a unique and important place in public life,” General Secretary of the National Union of Journalists, Laura Davison, explained.
“We are confident that we have made the right decision for the publication’s team, readers, and the future success of both the Observer and the Guardian,” said Katharine Viner, editor-in-chief of Guardian News and Media. “I understand the difficult this time has been for Observer employees.”
It is a model that will see investment in media and journalists, enshrine the Scott Trust’s ideals in the Observer’s future, and safeguard the Observer and Guardian’s capacity to continue to publish credible, liberal news.
It is a plan that will result in investments made in journalism and journalists, preserve the Observer and Guardian’s capacity to continue producing liberal, trustworthy media, and entrench the principles of the Scott Trust in the Observer’s future.
Since 1993, the Guardian Media Group has operated the Observer, which employs about 70 people. Employees were already informed that they may transfer to Tortoise on their current contracts or seek voluntary redundancy on improved terms if the transaction proceeded.
Additionally, freelancers were informed that their contracts would be renegotiated after being extended until September 2025. Prior to ceasing to provide audited data in 2021, its circulation had been gradually declining. It was selling about 136,000 copies a week at that time.
“This investment will protect the paper’s future and preserve the Observer’s 233-year legacy, ensuring that it will keep delivering exceptional liberal journalism, both online and in print, for years to come,” stated Anna Bateson, the CEO of Guardian Media Group.
As we continue to place readers at the center of our exceptional journalism, the agreement also contributes to the Guardian’s long-term success by fostering our expansion both internationally and digitally.
In 2022—the most recent year for which financial statements are available—the company generated £6.2 million in revenue but experienced an operating loss of £4.6 million.
The investment firm Lansdowne Partners, internet investor Saul Klein, banker Bernie Mensah, Nando’s CEO Leslie Perlman, and David Thomson, chair of the media company Thomson Reuters, are among its sponsors. The extension of freelance agreements until the end of September 2025 will lead to their renegotiation.
The objective has always been to achieve what is proper for Guardian and Observer readers and staff so that both publications continue to support liberal journalism and thrive far into the future, according to reports from Ole Jacob Sunde, chair of the Scott Trust, who spoke to staff.
According to the media, Sunde also stated that under any such agreement, the Scott Trust would continue to hold a portion of the Observer and that the new owners would need to “embody the ideals of
Tortoise made an offer to the Guardian Media Group in September to invest approximately £25 million over the next five years in the “editorial and commercial renewal” of the Observer.
