The Observer, the world’s oldest Sunday newspaper and the sister publication of The Guardian, may be in trouble with the Guardian Media Group (GMG) considering closing it down.

With newspaper revenues having taken a massive hit in recent times, the GMG may convert The Observer to a news magazine format in order to cut costs, with the new publication being published Thursdays rather than Sundays. This plan is reportedly being challenged by members of the Scott Trust, however, which is a charity that owns the GMG. With a history dating back to 1791, some of the trust’s members may be thinking that it would be regretful to throw that away when other cost cutting measures may be all that are necessary.

The GMG is in a dire position, though. It has been estimated that The Observer has not turned a profit since its sale to The Guardian in 1993, and that it has been costing more than 10 million pounds per year recently in order to continue operations. Additionally, the GMG has reported a pre-tax loss of 89.8 million pounds in the last year, down from a 306.4 million pound profit for the year before. In such circumstances, The Observer is an expensive luxury indeed.

If The Observer is not changed to a magazine format, then it is likely that it will suffer many layoffs and other cost cutting measures. It would seem that regardless of what the Scott Trust and the GMG decide, The Observer is almost certain to be published in a reduced form in the years to come.