Guardian Subscribers Top Eight Hundred Thousand
The Guardian has announced that it is now funded by more than 800,000 supporters from over 140 countries via its open subscription model.
Writing in an article published today editor in chief Katharine Viner announced that around half a million readers are Guardian subscribers or members, or donate to the paper on a monthly basis. Plus, over the past 12 months, the paper has received a further 300,000 individual contributions from across the world.
Ms Viner said: “We are encouraged and cheered by the hundreds of thousands of you who are supporting our journalism. In the last year alone, the number of readers who support us regularly has more than doubled; and we now receive more income from our readers than we do from advertisers. This is a significant step.
“We will continue to rely and build on this in the year ahead, as we aim with your help to reach many thousands more supporters, and sustain that support in the long term so we can keep investing in quality investigative journalism. The Guardian’s unique ownership structure safeguards our editorial independence from commercial or political interference and means we can reinvest any money we receive into this journalism that matters so much.
“We haven’t put up a paywall. Instead, we want to remain a strong, progressive force that is open for all. So we need many more of our readers to fund the Guardian: join them and support independent, quality journalism.
“When you stand with us you empower our journalists and inform the way we approach stories and subjects. Your participation helps us produce the work we are most proud of.”
Ms Viner went on to discuss the digital duopoly of Google and Facebook and the importance of investing in trusted original journalism.
She continued: “…we are doing crucial work. But advertising revenues continue to decline, with technology giants such as Facebook and Google dominating the digital ad space, and print advertising falling for most publications too.
“Now more than ever, the world needs progressive journalism, committed to facts and helping readers make sense of the world.”