Washington Post 2003 Annual Report Download - page 42

Interest Rate Risk
At December 28, 2003, the Company had short-term commercial paper borrowings outstanding of $188,316,000 at an
average interest rate of 1.1%. At December 29, 2002, the Company had commercial paper borrowings outstanding of
$259,258,000 at an average interest rate of 1.6%. The Company is exposed to interest rate risk with respect to such
borrowings since an increase in commercial paper borrowing rates would increase the Company's interest expense on its
commercial paper borrowings. Assuming a hypothetical 100 basis point increase in its average commercial paper
borrowing rates from those that prevailed during the Company's 2003 and 2002 fiscal years, the Company's interest
expense would have been greater by approximately $1,800,000 in fiscal 2003 and by approximately $4,100,000 in
fiscal 2002.
The Company's long-term debt consists of $400,000,000 principal amount of 5.5% unsecured notes due February 15,
2009 (the ""Notes''). At December 28, 2003, the aggregate fair value of the Notes, based upon quoted market prices,
was $434,560,000. An increase in the market rate of interest applicable to the Notes would not increase the Company's
interest expense with respect to the Notes since the rate of interest the Company is required to pay on the Notes is fixed,
but such an increase in rates would affect the fair value of the Notes. Assuming, hypothetically, that the market interest rate
applicable to the Notes was 100 basis points higher than the Notes' stated interest rate of 5.5%, the fair value of the
Notes would be approximately $382,770,000. Conversely, if the market interest rate applicable to the Notes was 100
basis points lower than the Notes' stated interest rate, the fair value of the Notes would then be approximately
$418,100,000.
Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.
See the Company's Consolidated Financial Statements at December 28, 2003, and for the periods then ended, together
with the report of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP thereon and the information contained in Note O to said Consolidated
Financial Statements titled ""Summary of Quarterly Operating Results and Comprehensive Income (Unaudited),'' which are
included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K and listed in the index to financial information on page 25 hereof.
Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial
Disclosure.
Not applicable.
Item 9A. Controls and Procedures.
An evaluation was performed by the Company's management, with the participation of the Company's Chief Executive
Officer (the Company's principal executive officer) and the Company's Vice President-Finance (the Company's principal
financial officer), of the effectiveness of the Company's disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act
Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)), as of December 28, 2003. Based on that evaluation, the Company's Chief
Executive Officer and Vice President-Finance have concluded that the Company's disclosure controls and procedures, as
designed and implemented, are effective in ensuring that information required to be disclosed by the Company in the
reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time
periods specified in the Securities and Exchange Commission's rules and forms.
PART III
Item 10. Directors and Executive Officers of the Registrant.
The information contained under the heading ""Executive Officers'' in Item 1 hereof and the information contained under the
headings ""Nominees for Election by Class A Stockholders,'' ""Nominees for Election by Class B Stockholders'' and
""Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance'' in the definitive Proxy Statement for the Company's 2004
Annual Meeting of Stockholders is incorporated herein by reference thereto.
The Company has adopted codes of conduct that constitute ""codes of ethics'' as that term is defined in paragraph (b) of
Item 406 of Regulation S-K and that apply to the Company's principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal
accounting officer or controller and to any persons performing similar functions. Such codes of conduct are posted on the
Company's Internet website, the address of which is
www.washpostco.com, and the Company intends to satisfy the
disclosure requirements under Item 10 of Form 8-K with respect to certain amendments to, and waivers of the requirements
of, the provisions of such codes of conduct applicable to the officers and persons referred to above by posting the
required information on its Internet website.
22 THE WASHINGTON POST COMPANY