The sale of the Observer, the world’s oldest Sunday paper, to news start-up Tortoise Media has been approved.
The move by the boards of its owner the Scott Trust and the Guardian Media Group followed a 48-hour strike this week by journalists on the Observer and the Guardian in protest at the sale.
The Scott Trust said it will invest in Tortoise Media, becoming a key shareholder, taking a seat on both its editorial and commercial boards.
The deal will see £25 million in new investment for the 233-year-old Sunday newspaper, with a commitment to print the Observer on a Sunday and a plan to build it into a digital brand by the boards of the Scott Trust and Guardian Media Group, they announced.
Tortoise Media was launched in 2018 by former BBC executive and Times editor James Harding and Matthew Barzun, a former US ambassador.
The start-up, which specialises in what it calls “slow news”, said it has committed to safeguard journalistic freedom and the editorial independence of the Observer, undertaking to honour the “liberal values and journalistic standards” of the Scott Trust in their editorial code.
It is expected the deal will be signed in the coming days.
Mr Harding, editor and founder of Tortoise, said: “We are honoured and excited at the prospect of working together to renew The Observer, a name that represents the best of liberal, pioneering journalism.
“We admire its temperament, both tolerant and humane. We love its appetite for the arts and, of course, food. We promise its readers we will do all we can to live up to its history as a defender of human dignity and to give it a new lease of life as a powerful, progressive voice in the world.”
Matthew Barzun, chairman and founder of Tortoise, said: “This process revealed the enormous regard and passionate connection so many have to the world’s oldest Sunday newspaper.
“I am deeply appreciative of our investor partners, including the Scott Trust, all of whom expect the highest quality independent journalism.
“We are filled with an awesome sense of responsibility as we become a part of its long story and participants in sharing the stories it will long keep telling.”
Katharine Viner, editor-in-chief of Guardian News & Media, said: “I recognise how unsettling this period has been for Observer staff, but we’re confident we have agreed the best possible way forward for the title’s journalists, its readers and the future of both the Observer and the Guardian.
“It is a model that will see investment in journalism and journalists, enshrines the Scott Trust’s values in the Observer’s future, and protects the Observer and Guardian’s ability to continue to produce trusted, liberal journalism.”
Anna Bateson, chief executive of Guardian Media Group, said: “This investment will preserve the Observer’s 233-year legacy and protect the paper’s future, ensuring it can continue producing exceptional liberal journalism, online and in print, for years to come. Underpinning it all will be a continued commitment to promoting a free press and maintaining editorial independence.
“The deal also supports the long-term success of the Guardian, building on our growth globally and across digital, as we continue to put readers at the heart of our outstanding journalism.”
Day two of our 48 hr strike over plans to sell the Observer has kicked off! See you on the picket line.
Thank you to wonderful @Philippa_Perry and Grayson, @MichaelRosenYes, @RosieBoycott, @jeremydeller and @paulwaugh MP for coming down yday ⬇️💪🧡 https://t.co/DlEIIAa2Cm pic.twitter.com/6qHQm8fWoX
— The Guardian and Observer NUJ (@gonuj93) December 5, 2024
National Union of Journalists general secretary-elect Laura Davison said: “Members at the Guardian and Observer will be angry and extremely disappointed that the Scott Trust and GMG boards have chosen to approve the deal in principle to sell The Observer to Tortoise Media despite the union’s call for more time to consider this and other options.
“The timing of the decision, before the end of two extremely well-supported days of action, is particularly shabby. The NUJ chapel will be meeting later today to consider their response.”
The two days of strikes this week were supported by a number of politicians and well-known cultural figures including Grayson Perry, Lemn Sissay, Anne Robinson, Michael Rosen and Stewart Lee, and backed by messages of support from stars including Tilda Swinton, Maxine Peake and Armando Iannucci.
The NUJ branch (chapel) at the Observer and Guardian said in a statement that this week’s industrial action was backed by 93% of union members and saw support from parliamentarians, union leaders, as well as prominent artists, musicians, actors and other cultural figures.
A spokesperson added: “We are all equally passionate about preserving the integrity of the world’s oldest Sunday newspaper.
“So we were outraged to wake up to news this morning that members of the Scott Trust had chosen to approve the deal while our action was taking place.
“The decision to move ahead with the deal, in principle, underlined their refusal to take on board the well-founded objections and strength of opposition from journalists and readers.
“This chapel is still opposed to the transfer and believes that by ramming this deeply unpopular and opaque deal through they have undermined their values and sparked a crisis in governance, a responsibility that lies at the door of the boards of the Scott Trust and Guardian Media Group.
“The Guardian and Observer has a long and proud history of journalists’ participation in the organisation; this has never felt more at risk. We urge the company to pause, reconsider all options and the impact this will have on the standing of the Observer and the long-term future of liberal journalism.
“Two days of strikes take place next week, and the Guardian and Observer NUJ chapel will be meeting to consider further actions.”