In the middle distance, a different kind of Guardian Media Group appears to be taking shape.

The Sunday Times reports that GMG investments like EMAP and Trader Media Group, as well as wholly-owned subisidiaries that operate radio stations and classified websites, will be hived off into ‘an investment portfolio from where they could be sold over time”.

So what? Well, it’s what insiders call the ‘direction of travel’that’s important here. At some point in the future, we may wake up to find that The Guardian is being run by a charitable foundation that looks rather like The Wellcome Trust.