In a statement, the Scott Trust said: “As the owners of The Guardian, the Scott Trust apologises to the affected communities identified in the research and surviving descendants of the enslaved for the part The Guardian and its founders had in this crime against humanity, perpetrated against their ancestors”.

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It also apologised for The Guardian’s early editorial position supporting the cotton and textile industry, “and therefore the continued exploitation of enslaved people”.

In an article published on Tuesday, Katharine Viner, editor-in-chief of The Guardian, wrote: “We are facing up to, and apologising for, the fact that our founder and those who funded him drew their wealth from a practice that was a crime against humanity.

“As we enter our third century as a news organisation, this awful history must reinforce our determination to use our journalism to expose racism, injustice and inequality, and to hold the powerful to account.”

The Scott Trust said its £10 million fund would support projects for the Gullah Geechee people in the US and Jamaica over the next decade.

Other measures include raising awareness of transatlantic slavery and its legacies, improving media diversity and further academic research, as well as expanding its reporting of black communities in the UK.

The Telegraph, London

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