A newspaper that began with only four pages in Manchester more than 200 years ago is now read across the world every day. The Guardian has survived wars, political changes, television, the internet, social media and the collapse of many traditional newspaper business models. Today, The Guardian has five digital editions, a large global audience and an unusual ownership system with no individual billionaire owner. In 2026, it is also spending millions to move deeper into video, digital storytelling and global journalism.
What Is The Guardian?
The Guardian is a British news organisation.
It reports on politics, world affairs, business, sport, science, technology, climate, culture, lifestyle and many other subjects.
It also publishes opinion pieces, investigations, podcasts, documentaries, live news pages and visual stories.
The Guardian still prints a newspaper six days a week in the United Kingdom, but its audience is now heavily digital and international. More than two-thirds of its digital audience comes from outside the UK.
That is an important change.
The Guardian began as a local Manchester newspaper.
Today, someone in London, New York, Sydney, Berlin or Delhi can open the same publication within seconds.
When Was The Guardian Founded?
The newspaper was founded in 1821.
Its original name was The Manchester Guardian. The first edition appeared on May 5, 1821.
It was created by John Edward Taylor in Manchester.
The newspaper appeared shortly after the Peterloo Massacre of 1819, when people demanding political reform were attacked at a public gathering in Manchester.
The new publication was connected with the liberal reform movement of the time.
In very simple words, it wanted to discuss politics, freedom, reform and public life at a moment when Britain was changing quickly.
Why Was It Called The Manchester Guardian?
The answer is easy.
It was created in Manchester.
Manchester was one of Britain’s most important industrial cities during the 1800s.
The newspaper’s early readers were therefore strongly connected with the city and the surrounding region.
But the publication did not remain local forever.
Its national and international coverage grew.
By the middle of the 20th century, “Manchester” no longer fully described its audience or ambitions.
The newspaper officially changed its name to The Guardian in 1959.
Who Was C. P. Scott?
One person became especially important in The Guardian’s history.
His name was C. P. Scott.
Scott spent decades leading the Manchester Guardian and helped shape the values still associated with the publication today.
In 1921, when the newspaper celebrated its 100th anniversary, Scott wrote about the principles he believed journalism should follow.
Those ideas included honesty, courage, fairness, integrity and responsibility to readers.
One sentence from that essay became famous:
“Comment is free, but facts are sacred.”
The basic meaning is simple.
People can disagree about opinions.
But facts should still matter.
Who Owns The Guardian?
This is one of the most interesting questions about the newspaper.
The Guardian does not have one private billionaire owner.
Guardian Media Group is ultimately controlled through The Scott Trust, which is its sole shareholder.
The ownership structure is designed to protect the newspaper’s editorial and financial independence.
Money made by the wider organisation can be reinvested into journalism rather than being distributed to a private newspaper owner as profit.
Think about it like this.
Some newspapers belong to wealthy individuals or large companies.
The Guardian belongs to a structure created mainly to keep the journalism going over the long term.
What Is The Scott Trust?
The Scott Trust was created in 1936.
After C. P. Scott and his son Ted died, the newspaper faced questions about how it could remain financially secure and independent.
C. P. Scott’s surviving son, John Russell Scott, transferred the family interest in the newspaper into a trust.
The central goal was to protect The Guardian’s independence.
The original trust structure later changed.
In 2008, it became The Scott Trust Limited, while keeping the same basic purpose.
Today, the wider structure includes The Scott Trust, the Scott Trust Endowment and Guardian Media Group.
Does a Billionaire Own The Guardian?
No.
There is no single billionaire who personally owns The Guardian.
The Scott Trust is the sole shareholder of Guardian Media Group.
This does not mean money has no effect on the organisation.
The Guardian still needs revenue.
It pays journalists.
It has offices.
It spends money on technology, travel, investigations, video production and legal work.
But the ownership model means there is not one rich owner who can simply take profits from the company or sell the newspaper for personal gain.
Who Is The Guardian Editor in 2026?
Katharine Viner is editor-in-chief of The Guardian.
She has held the role since June 2015.
Viner had already worked in several important Guardian positions before taking the top job.
She served as deputy editor.
She helped launch Guardian Australia.
She also worked as editor of Guardian US in New York.
Her career therefore reflects something important about the modern Guardian.
The organisation is British, but its journalism is increasingly global.
Who Is The Guardian CEO?
Anna Bateson is chief executive of Guardian Media Group.
She took the job in September 2022.
Before that, Bateson worked in media and technology, including roles connected with YouTube, Google, ITV, MTV and Bloomberg.
Her job is different from Katharine Viner’s role.
Viner leads the editorial operation.
Bateson leads the business side.
One focuses mainly on journalism.
The other has to help make sure the organisation has enough money and the right strategy to continue producing that journalism.
Is The Guardian Left-Wing or Right-Wing?
The Guardian comes from a liberal political tradition.
Its own history says The Manchester Guardian was founded in the liberal interest and connected with political reform.
Today, it is generally associated with liberal and progressive ideas.
Its opinion pages often contain arguments about social equality, climate action, human rights, public services and other issues commonly associated with the political centre-left.
However, news and opinion should not be treated as exactly the same thing.
A news article tries to report information.
An opinion article gives a writer space to argue a particular view.
Readers can agree with The Guardian’s politics, disagree with them or read several news organisations to compare coverage.
Is The Guardian Part of the Labour Party?
No.
The Guardian is not owned by the Labour Party and it is not an official Labour newspaper.
Its political tradition is liberal and broadly left-of-centre, but that does not mean every writer supports the same party or every article takes the same political position.
Guardian journalists also publish criticism of Labour governments and politicians.
It is therefore more accurate to describe The Guardian by its broader liberal editorial tradition than to call it a newspaper controlled by one political party.
Is The Guardian Free to Read?
A large amount of Guardian journalism remains freely available online.
The organisation relies heavily on readers choosing to pay through contributions and recurring support rather than placing all of its journalism behind a strict paywall.
This is a major part of The Guardian’s modern business model.
You may open an article without paying.
Then, near the end, you may see a message asking you to support independent journalism.
Some people make one payment.
Others become recurring supporters.
The Guardian says it now has readers supporting its work in more than 180 countries.
Why Does The Guardian Keep Asking for Donations?
Because journalism costs money.
A newspaper may look simple from the outside.
A reporter writes an article and somebody publishes it.
But major journalism can require months of work.
Reporters travel.
Editors check stories.
Lawyers may review sensitive investigations.
Video teams film documentaries.
Developers build apps.
Foreign correspondents work around the world.
The Guardian therefore uses reader support as one of its main ways to fund journalism.
Its latest published annual results show how important that model has become.
How Much Money Does The Guardian Make?
The latest full annual financial results available as of August 2026 cover the 2024/25 financial year.
Guardian Media Group reported total revenue of £275.9 million.
That was up from £257.8 million a year earlier.
Digital revenue represented 72% of total revenue.
Digital reader revenue increased to £107.3 million.
The organisation also reported about 1.3 million recurring digital supporters.
Those numbers make one thing very clear.
The Guardian is no longer mainly a printed newspaper business.
Its future is increasingly digital.
How Global Is The Guardian?
Very global.
The Guardian currently operates five digital editions:
UK.
US.
Australia.
Europe.
International.
More than two-thirds of its total digital audience comes from outside the United Kingdom.
The financial side is becoming international too.
In the latest annual results, revenue from outside the UK reached £105.5 million, representing more than 38% of total revenue.
US revenue alone increased to £55.5 million for that financial year.
The Guardian may have started in Manchester.
Its business no longer depends only on British readers.
What Is Guardian US?
Guardian US is the American part of The Guardian’s global operation.
It covers US politics, social issues, climate, culture, business and world affairs for an American audience.
The US operation also played a major role in one of The Guardian’s most famous modern stories.
In 2014, Guardian US won the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for reporting on secret National Security Agency surveillance revealed through documents from Edward Snowden.
The Washington Post also received the Public Service award that year for its Snowden-related reporting.
Why Was the Snowden Story So Important?
Edward Snowden gave journalists documents showing how governments were conducting large-scale digital surveillance.
The reporting led to a huge international discussion about privacy, national security and government power.
The Pulitzer committee praised Guardian US for revealing widespread secret NSA surveillance and helping spark public debate about security and privacy.
That story changed how many American readers viewed The Guardian.
It was no longer simply a British newspaper reporting from far away.
It had become an important part of major US investigative journalism.
What Is Guardian Australia?
Guardian Australia launched in 2013.
Katharine Viner helped launch it before later becoming editor-in-chief of the entire Guardian organisation.
The Australian edition focuses on politics, climate, Indigenous issues, culture, sport and other subjects important to readers there.
In 2026, Guardian Australia is also becoming more important to the organisation’s global social-media work.
The Guardian announced that its Australian operation would become a global centre for social hosting as part of its wider digital expansion.
What Is Guardian Europe?
Guardian Europe is another of the publication’s five digital editions.
It gives more attention to European politics, culture, society, climate and regional issues while still sharing wider Guardian reporting.
The international editions show how digital publishing changed newspapers.
A printed paper had to be physically delivered.
A website does not have the same problem.
One newsroom can now reach readers in dozens of countries almost instantly.
Is The Guardian Expanding in India?
Yes, although it has not announced a full Guardian India edition.
On August 4, 2026, The Guardian launched a free weekly newsletter called This is India.
It is written by journalist Niha Masih and focuses on Indian news, politics, culture and life.
The Guardian said recent Comscore research showed it had reached more than four million unique visitors in India during the previous quarter.
The newsletter is designed to build a stronger direct relationship with Indian readers.
This is a good example of how The Guardian is trying to expand without immediately creating another full digital edition.
Is The Guardian Still a Printed Newspaper?
Yes.
The Guardian still publishes a physical newspaper six days a week in the UK.
However, its print design has changed over time.
In January 2018, The Guardian moved to a tabloid-sized format as part of an effort to reduce printing costs and make the business more sustainable.
That does not mean it became a “tabloid newspaper” in the celebrity-gossip sense.
“Tabloid” can also describe the physical size of a newspaper.
That difference is important.
Does The Guardian Publish on Sunday?
The Guardian itself prints six days a week.
For many years, The Observer was closely connected with Guardian Media Group and served as a famous Sunday newspaper.
That changed in 2025.
Ownership of The Observer moved from Guardian News & Media to Tortoise Media on April 22, 2025.
Tortoise gained independent editorial control.
So articles that describe The Observer as simply “The Guardian’s Sunday newspaper” can now be misleading if they are talking about current ownership.
Does The Guardian Have an App?
Yes.
The Guardian publishes through its website and app and is investing heavily in digital products.
Its wider digital portfolio also includes podcasts, documentaries and products such as its Feast recipe app.
This matters because younger audiences may never buy a printed Guardian newspaper.
They may know the brand from a phone notification.
A video.
A podcast.
A social-media clip.
Or a Google search.
That is the audience The Guardian is trying to reach more aggressively in 2026.
What Is The Guardian Changing in 2026?
One of the biggest company developments this year is a new investment in digital and visual journalism.
On June 30, 2026, The Guardian announced plans to create around 55 permanent new jobs across the UK, US and Australia over the following 12 months.
The roles are part of a larger multiyear investment.
The Guardian wants to become more:
Digital.
Visual.
Global.
Experimental.
New investment includes video, visual investigations, data visualisation, product development and other areas.
What Is Guardian Studios?
Guardian Studios is a newer part of the organisation’s digital plans.
It is focused on video-first journalism and new ways of telling stories visually.
The Guardian is also adding a US video team and investing further in visual investigations and data work.
This is an important clue about where journalism is going.
People still read long articles.
But they also watch news on phones.
A modern newsroom therefore has to think about words, video, graphics, audio and social media at the same time.
Does The Guardian Make Documentaries?
Yes.
Documentary journalism has become another important part of the brand.
In May 2026, The Guardian won a News & Documentary Emmy Award for Along the Green Line.
The documentary series examined lives on different sides of the Israeli-Palestinian Green Line.
The 2026 award became The Guardian’s fourth News & Documentary Emmy win.
That shows how far the publication has moved beyond traditional newspaper pages.
Its journalism now includes major video work as well as written reporting.
Does The Guardian Cover Sport?
Very heavily.
Football is especially important to its global sports coverage.
For the 2026 men’s FIFA World Cup, The Guardian announced its biggest deployment for a single sporting event, with around 30 writers, editors and multimedia producers working across North America.
The tournament coverage included live reporting, analysis and digital features.
Sport may look separate from political journalism.
But for a global news business, it is extremely important.
Football gives The Guardian a way to reach millions of readers who may not arrive through politics or breaking news.
Is The Guardian Against Artificial Intelligence?
It would be too simple to say The Guardian is “against AI.”
A more accurate description is that it wants clearer rules around how publishers’ journalism can be used by AI companies.
In February 2026, The Guardian joined the BBC, Financial Times, Sky News and Telegraph Media Group as founding members of Spur, a group promoting standards for publisher rights and AI licensing.
The debate is about control and payment.
News organisations spend money producing journalism.
AI systems can use huge amounts of online material.
Publishers want clearer rules about when and how their work can be used.
Does The Guardian Correct Mistakes?
Like every large newsroom, The Guardian can make errors.
Professional journalism does not mean never getting anything wrong.
It means having systems for fixing mistakes when they are discovered.
The Guardian provides complaints and corrections channels as part of its public newsroom structure. Its annual-report page and website direct readers toward formal corrections and complaints processes.
This is useful when judging any news organisation.
Do not ask only, “Has this website ever made an error?”
A better question is:
“What does it do when an error is found?”
Is The Guardian Reliable?
The Guardian is a long-established international news organisation with professional reporters, editors, investigations and formal correction systems.
It has also received major journalism awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service and multiple News & Documentary Emmy Awards.
But no newspaper should be treated as perfect or completely free of perspective.
The Guardian openly comes from a liberal tradition.
For highly disputed political stories, readers can compare its coverage with Reuters, AP, BBC and other established outlets.
This does not mean one source must always be wrong.
Different newsrooms may focus on different parts of the same story.
Did The Guardian Have Historical Links to Slavery?
The Guardian has publicly examined this difficult part of its history.
Research commissioned by the Scott Trust found that founder John Edward Taylor and several early financial backers had economic links to industries that depended on enslaved labour, especially through cotton and textile businesses.
The Scott Trust published the research in 2023.
It apologised and announced a £10 million restorative justice programme connected with affected communities and the historical legacy.
This does not change the newspaper’s founding date or later journalism.
But it adds important context to the story of how businesses in 19th-century Manchester were connected with the wider global economy of slavery.
Why Did The Guardian Investigate Its Own History?
The Scott Trust began looking more closely at the newspaper’s past as organisations around Britain faced new questions about historical connections with slavery.
The resulting research found uncomfortable information about The Guardian’s founder and several early backers.
Instead of keeping the findings private, the organisation published the research.
That decision became part of a longer programme looking at history, journalism and restorative work.
People can debate whether the response is enough.
But the historical links themselves should not simply be ignored.
How Many People Support The Guardian?
There are several numbers online, and they can look confusing.
The latest annual financial results reported 1.3 million recurring digital supporters.
A newer June 2026 Guardian announcement said more than two million readers across 180 countries had supported its work.
These figures are not necessarily contradictory.
One measures recurring digital supporters.
The larger figure refers more broadly to people who have financially supported Guardian journalism.
This is a good example of why numbers need context.
Why Is The Guardian Still Important After 200 Years?
The easiest answer is that it kept changing.
It started as The Manchester Guardian.
Then it became a national newspaper.
The name changed to The Guardian.
It expanded globally.
It moved heavily online.
It developed US and Australian operations.
It created European and international digital editions.
It built a reader-funding system.
Now it is investing heavily in video, visual investigations and other digital formats.
The product changed.
The technology changed.
The audience changed.
But people still want news, explanation and investigation.
That basic need remains the same.
FAQs About The Guardian
What is The Guardian?
The Guardian is a British-born global news organisation covering politics, world news, business, sport, culture, science, climate and many other subjects. It also publishes a newspaper six days a week in the UK.
When was The Guardian founded?
It was founded as The Manchester Guardian in 1821. Its first edition appeared on May 5 of that year.
Who founded The Guardian?
John Edward Taylor founded The Manchester Guardian in Manchester.
When did The Manchester Guardian become The Guardian?
The newspaper changed its name in 1959 as its national and international coverage became more important.
Who owns The Guardian?
The Scott Trust is the sole shareholder of Guardian Media Group, which owns Guardian News & Media and publishes The Guardian.
Does a billionaire own The Guardian?
No. The Guardian’s ownership structure does not involve a single private billionaire owner.
Who is The Guardian editor in 2026?
Katharine Viner is editor-in-chief. She has held the position since June 2015.
Who is The Guardian CEO?
Anna Bateson is chief executive of Guardian Media Group.
Is The Guardian left-wing?
The Guardian comes from a liberal political and journalistic tradition and is commonly associated with progressive or centre-left ideas. Its own history describes its founding connection with the liberal interest.
Is The Guardian free?
Much of its journalism can be read without a hard paywall. The organisation asks readers to contribute voluntarily or become recurring supporters.
How much revenue does The Guardian make?
Guardian Media Group reported £275.9 million in revenue for its 2024/25 financial year.
How many Guardian supporters are there?
Its latest annual report recorded about 1.3 million recurring digital supporters. A June 2026 announcement said more than two million readers across 180 countries had supported its journalism in some form.
How many Guardian editions are there?
There are five digital editions: UK, US, Australia, Europe and International.
Is The Guardian still printed?
Yes. The Guardian still prints a newspaper six days a week in the UK.
Does The Guardian own The Observer?
No. Ownership of The Observer transferred to Tortoise Media in April 2025.
Did The Guardian win a Pulitzer?
Yes. Guardian US received the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for its reporting on secret NSA surveillance.
What is The Guardian doing in 2026?
The Guardian is creating around 55 permanent new jobs as part of a larger push into digital, visual and global journalism. It has also expanded video work and launched the This is India newsletter.
Final Thoughts
The story of The Guardian is much bigger than the story of one newspaper.
It began in Manchester in 1821.
Its first edition had only four pages.
Then it grew.
The Manchester Guardian became The Guardian in 1959 as the publication became increasingly national and international.
Its ownership also became unusual.
The Scott Trust was created in 1936 to protect the newspaper’s independence, and the modern Scott Trust structure remains the foundation of Guardian ownership today.
Now another change is happening.
Print still exists, but digital journalism dominates the business.
The latest annual results show that 72% of Guardian Media Group revenue comes from digital sources, while the publication has 1.3 million recurring digital supporters.
Its audience is global too.
More than two-thirds of the digital audience is outside Britain, and The Guardian now operates UK, US, Australia, Europe and International editions.
In 2026, the organisation is moving further in that direction.
Around 55 permanent jobs are being created to support video, visual investigations, digital products and other new forms of journalism.
A new India-focused newsletter has also launched as The Guardian looks for deeper relationships with readers in another major market.
The Guardian has critics.
It has a clear liberal tradition.
It has made mistakes.
It also has a complicated history, including economic connections between some of its founders and the slavery-linked cotton trade.
At the same time, it has produced investigations that changed public debates and won major awards, including a Pulitzer for the Snowden surveillance reporting.
That mix makes The Guardian difficult to describe with one simple word.
It is old, but increasingly digital.
It is British, but mostly reaches readers beyond Britain online.
It has no billionaire owner, but still has to solve the same financial problems facing modern journalism.
More than 200 years after its first Manchester edition, The Guardian is still trying to answer the same basic question:
How can journalism survive, stay independent and remain useful when the world around it keeps changing?
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