The Scott Trust has been urged to pause the sale of The Observer to Tortoise Media by five former editors and one ex-editor in chief of the title.
Paul Webster, who stepped down as Observer editor earlier this month, has been joined by fellow former Observer editors Roger Alton, John Mulholland, Will Hutton and Jonathan Fenby in signing a letter of protest against the plan to transfer ownership of the title to Tortoise. Former Guardian and Observer editor-in-chief Alan Rusbridger has also signed the letter.
Their protest comes as The Scott Trust, which owns Guardian Media Group, heads into a confrontation with Guardian and Observer journalists who start a first 48-hour strike on 4 December.
Journalists are unhappy about a lack of consultation from The Scott Trust over its plan to sell The Observer to Tortoise. They also fear that Tortoise could be a precarious employer for the 70 Observer journalists who would transfer across, given it is a loss-making start-up.
The letter to Scott Trust chair Ole Jacob Sunde notes that the Trust likely saved The Observer from closure when it bought the title in 1993. The Trust bought The Observer to stop it being acquired by The Independent and possibly merged with The Independent on Sunday.
The letter also echoes questions raised by a consortium of press freedom groups who have asked The Scott Trust why the sale of The Observer is only being discussed with one preferred bidder, rather than through an “open, transparent and fair process”.
The letter from the editors states:
“We are writing to you as six previous editors, or editors-in-chief, of the Observer.
“The Scott Trust undoubtedly saved the Observer when it purchased the title in 1993 and we are grateful for the Trust’s 30-year stewardship, which has allowed the title to continue as an important, independent liberal voice in Britain and beyond.
“We are concerned to read of the widespread disquiet among Guardian and Observer journalists over the proposal essentially to give the paper to Tortoise Media, an enterprising but small start-up led by James Harding. We admire James and the work Tortoise has done, especially in podcasting, but note that his company has never, in six years, made a profit. Its last set of accounts show an operating loss of £4.5m on a turnover of £6.2m.
“The Scott Trust’s own figures show that the Observer made a net contribution of £3.4m in 2024 and that, in the first six months of the current financial year, it was contributing £1.8m. We fully understand that the figures do not include certain shared costs with the Guardian and that newspaper sales are declining across the market. Nevertheless, we see no crisis that could possibly justify a rushed sale.
“It is a gamble, a throw of the dice, for a title which started publishing in 1791.
“This is particularly true given the £1.3bn Scott Trust endowment which is avowedly there both to protect the Guardian in perpetuity as well as to promote ‘the causes of freedom of the press and liberal journalism in Britain and elsewhere’. That has always been taken to include the Observer – assuming it did not jeopardise the future of the Guardian. We can see no such threat.
“Guardian management are promising a ‘strategic audit’ of the Observer if the Tortoise deal does not go ahead. We respectfully suggest that it would have been better to have conducted such an audit before offloading the paper to the first bidder to express an interest.
“The handling of the bid is such that, for the first time in more than 40 years, journalists across both titles are now due to strike. They feel this is their only way to signal their anger at the way the Trust and GMG Board have handled the matter.
“We urge that negotiations with Tortoise be paused while Guardian and Observer journalists can contribute to a frank and open discussion about how the Observer’s voice might continue to be protected by the Scott Trust rather than cast off to an uncertain future. We believe such involvement is in keeping with the traditions of the papers and the Trust.
“If – and only if – those discussions fail to find a convincing future for the Observer in its present ownership then we suggest a ‘go shop’ period of up to three months during which the Trust could actively seek out any potential competing offers for the title.
“The cause of liberal journalism is a fragile one, in Britain and beyond. We urge that the Scott Trust should act with a great sense of its duty of stewardship towards a title which has such a magnificent and storied history.”
The letter is signed by: Roger Alton (editor 1998-2007), Jonathan Fenby (1993-1995), Will Hutton (1996-1998), John Mulholland (2008-2018), Paul Webster (2018-2024) and Alan Rusbridger (Guardian and Observer editor-in-chief 1995 to 2015).
A Scott Trust spokesperson said: “We recognise the strength of feeling about the proposed sale of the Observer. Our priority is to serve our readers, protect jobs and support our staff so that the Guardian and the Observer can continue to promote liberal journalism and thrive in a challenging media environment.
“We want to preserve The Observer’s 233-year legacy and we are continuing to progress the talks to ensure the proposed agreement is the best it can be for staff, readers and the future of liberal journalism.”
GMG management believes that The Observer is loss-making once shared costs are allocated to it.
The Scott Trust met on Monday and indicated that the Tortoise deal was continuing to progress.
The Trust said: “Talks continue to progress and there are a few outstanding points. All parties will continue detailed discussions to ensure the proposed agreement is the best it can be for staff, readers and the future of liberal journalism.”
Tortoise Media said on Monday: “We want to save The Observer, both for today’s readers and the generations to come. We have heard from a lot of Observer journalists who are excited about our ambition for the paper – and the people we bring with digital skills in podcasts, data journalism and newsletters, the investment that means new staff jobs, a much bigger editorial budget and a real plan for growth.
“We believe we can strengthen liberal journalism, adding to the range and reach of progressive voices; we can enable The Observer to reach new readers, as a Sunday newspaper with a digital life of its own; and we can renew the paper as a powerful voice in the world.”
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