The Guardian unveils first major ad push in four years

The film was directed by New York-based duo Rubberband through Smuggler. It was created as a collaboration between the media owner's marketing team, Lucky Generals and in-house agency Oliver. PHD handled media planning and buying.

It opens with a man in his kitchen reading The Guardian on his smartphone.

A series of quick edits flit through the newsbrand in its various formats–from the app on his phone, to The Guardian Weekly being read on a train, to an overhead shot of someone viewing a story on their laptop.

"Closed," the voiceover intones as the person snaps their computer screen shut. The action cuts to a keyboard and the title's comments section, where someone types: "Churning out more woke garbage..."

A number of tableaux play out, punctuated with the voice of the narrator: "Attacked... staunchly defended... feared... ranted about... raved about... used... abused..."

The film then returns to the original man in his kitchen, who is now snacking on a bowl of noodles. "Devoured," the narrator says.

The ad ends with the words: "Taken to bed, taken to heart, taken to court... But thanks to reader funding, never owned." Onscreen copy reads: "The Guardian. Not for sale. Support us."

Joel Midgley, head of marketing at Guardian News & Media, said: "The Guardian isn't like other media brands and our campaigns shouldn't be either. Everything we've produced is grounded in insights about what readers love most about us – a strong foundation that has enabled us to be playful, unexpected and bold in the execution.

"This is the beginning of something new for us and we can't wait to see reader responses."

The work aims to communicate the newspaper's and website's unique ownership and reader-funded model, as well as its "tradition of robust, editorial independence". The Guardian cites both as a reason for people to trust and financially support the brand.

The campaign will appear across The Guardian's own media channels and paid media across the UK and Europe. Digital out-of-home work will run in Amsterdam, Berlin, Dublin and Paris as well as London, Manchester, Bristol, Liverpool and Edinburgh.

She added that because it is "reader funded – rather than owned by controlling interests like billionaires or politicians – its journalism can never be influenced or controlled".

Holmes-Smith continued: "We knew the creative idea had to be as impactful as the paper itself and really drive home the vast range of emotions and reactions its unique publishing model gives it – but in a way that no one would be expecting.

"From the TV to the OOH we wanted to show just how ingrained the paper is in society but also how playful it can be."

The Guardian signalled it was looking for a new brand platform at the end of 2022, when it appointed the Omnicom agency.

The campaign is the first major ad push by The Guardian since 2019's "Hope is power", created by Uncommon Creative Studio. It featured a 60-second ad showing a butterfly struggling to escape from a darkened, unfurnished room.

Uncommon worked with the media owner on a project, as opposed to retained, basis.