The Whole Picture Behind the Guardian’s First US Brand Campaign

The Guardian has spent the past decade putting the work in to expand its British roots and build a vast, global audience. In the United States, the news organisation now has more than 100 editorial staff members across its bureaus in New York, Washington DC and Los Angeles, and draws an audience of more than 40 million readers from the country every month.

But the US is vast, with huge ground to cover and endless opportunities, a backdrop that led to the Guardian this week launching its first major brand campaign in the country.

Branded under the tagline ‘The whole picture’, the campaign positions the Guardian as “journalism that’s global, independent and free” – highlighting its ability to bring an outside, international perspective to US readers across news, culture, sport and lifestyle.

Led by Lucky Generals, the rollout spans New York’s subway system, including key lines and platforms, and high-visibility digital sites such as Moynihan Train Hall at Penn Station and opposite Madison Square Garden. It also extends into audio, with ads running across major Vox Media podcasts including ‘Pivot’, ‘Where Should We Begin? with Esther Perel’ and ‘Today, Explained’.

On September 24th, the Guardian also staged an interactive billboard in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District. The activation invited passers-by to peel away giant redactions to reveal the full message behind the statement: ‘news in America can’t publish the whole picture’, bringing the organisation’s independence to life in an unmissable way.

Beyond paid media, the campaign will live across the Guardian’s own channels, with creative appearing on its digital platforms, newsletters, video and audio. A launch video features US editor Betsy Reed introducing the campaign and its message to readers directly.

The Guardian is proudly reader-funded and independent, values that sit at the heart of its journalism and form the roots of this campaign. “Our values and our journalism shape everything we do, informing our approach of telling human stories behind the news,” says Joel Midgley, head of marketing at the Guardian, speaking with LBB. “Through the campaign we are demonstrating how we connect the dots on stories to uncover a global point of view.” He points to one creative execution that reads ‘See the world behind the cup’ as an example.

The same thinking has been applied to video content, with journalists from the US newsroom – including US editor Betsy Reed – speaking directly to social audiences about what the campaign message means to them.

“We know our independence is an incredibly important message too,” says Joel. “This gives us licence to be creatively bold.”

According to Joel, the campaign fits into a broader push to reach a wider American audience with new offerings, such as developing new podcasts, a US product review site called The Filter and a planned expansion of its global and US soccer coverage ahead of the 2026 World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico.

“We’ve seen impressive growth over the last 18 months as more Americans seek trustworthy news and inspiration, but there’s still lots of room to grow from an audience and brand perspective,” he says. “We want to find more people who might value what we do and want to spend more time with us, and we see ample room for growth in our advertising operations too.

“Most Guardian readers in the US know our tough, principled coverage of the climate crisis, politics, criminal justice and more. But not as many are aware of the breadth of our journalism. We cover so much more than just the news, including arts and culture, sports, lifestyle and wellness.”

‘The Whole Picture’ is the Guardian’s first brand campaign since 2023’s ‘Not for sale’. According to the Guardian, it takes inspiration from the iconic and award-winning campaign ‘Points of view’. Launched in 1986 and created by Boase Massimi Pollitt, the campaign presented multiple perspectives on a single event to demonstrate the Guardian’s balanced approach to journalism.

“As we moved through the process of planning our first major US brand campaign, we realised that we needed to retell our story to state the unique role the Guardian can play for American news audiences,” says Joel, adding that Guardian insights uncovered a sizable audience that is actively looking for a broader view on what’s happening in the US and around the world. “They are dissatisfied with a media offering that fails to consistently hold the powerful to account and are looking for inspiration on how to read and live differently.”

‘The whole picture’ is intended to encapsulate how the Guardian is able to meet these needs. “At its heart is an enduring truth about how independent journalism enables curious minds to understand the world more clearly and more deeply,” says Joel. “But in 2025, it also shows how Guardian journalism connects a global perspective with local experience. The campaign speaks to hard news as well as a breadth of journalism across sport, culture, wellness, cooking, shopping and more.”

In positioning the Guardian against both legacy US outlets and newer digital players, Joel points to the campaign’s core messaging. “Journalism that’s global, independent and free,” he says. “The combination of these three things gives us an edge on the competition: a global perspective that connects the dots on stories around the world, fierce independence that means no one edits our editors, and open access that brings enviable scale.

“There is a sense of overwhelm and powerlessness right now and the Guardian is well placed to help overcome this. By clearly presenting our journalism as a source of trust and rigorous thought, we want our audience to feel reassured and intrigued. Ultimately to view us as a quality place to spend more of their time.”