| Independent radical newsweekly | |
 Typical front page of the National Guardian during the McCarthy era | |
| Type | weekly |
|---|---|
| Format | tabloid |
| Founder(s) | James Aronson Cedric Belfrage John T. McManus |
| Founded | 1948 |
| Political alignment | Socialism, Anti-militarism, New Left/Maoism (1968-1992) |
| Ceased publication | 1992 |
| ISSN | 0362-5583 |
| OCLC number | 4564405 |
The National Guardian, later known as The Guardian, was a left-wing independent weekly newspaper established in 1948 in New York City. The paper was founded by James Aronson, Cedric Belfrage and John T. McManus in connection with the 1948 Presidential campaign of Henry A. Wallace under the Progressive Party banner. Although independent and often critical of all political parties, the National Guardian is thought to have been initially close to the ideological orbit of the pro-Moscow Communist Party USA, but this suspected association quickly broke down in the course of several years.
In February 1968 the newspaper's editorial staff was reorganized. The paper shortened its name to The Guardian and gradually turned towards a pro-Chinese orientation and support of the Maoist New Communist Movement in the United States.
During the early 1980s the publication's ideological line shifted once again, this time towards an independent non-communist radicalism. The Guardian was terminated in 1992 owing to declining circulation and financial difficulties.