Proprietary Education Provides a Public Good

by Daniel L. Bennett

The Washington Post Company reported 2nd quarter earnings today, with revenues of nearly $1.13 Billion and a net income of $11.4 Million. Not surprisingly, more than half of WPO's revenues were generated by its education unit Kaplan, which happened to record net income of over $58 million. Along with WPO's cable TV unit (which generated $40 million in operating income), Kaplan essentially subsidized one of the America's favorite newspapers, the Washington Post. (WPO's newspaper division reported an operating loss of over $89 million). In a waning era of newspaper publishing that has produced an exodus of papers, this merits recognition as a public work, right?