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                     U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                             Washington, D.C. 20549

                                     FORM 3

                 INITIAL STATEMENT OF BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP OF SECURITIES

    Filed pursuant to Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
       Section 17(a) of the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935 or
               Section 30(f) of the Investment Company Act of 1940

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1.   Name and Address of Reporting Person*

    Rivlin, Alice M.
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   (Last)                           (First)             (Middle)

    Brookings Institution, 1755 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W.
________________________________________________________________________________
                                    (Street)

    Washington, D.C.  20036
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   (City)                           (State)              (Zip)

     July 1, 2002
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2.   Date of Event Requiring Statement (Month/Day/Year)

________________________________________________________________________________
3.   IRS Identification Number of Reporting Person, if an Entity (Voluntary)

     The Washington Post Company, WPO
_______________________________________________________________________________
4.   Issuer Name and Ticker or Trading Symbol

     The Washington Post Company - WPO
________________________________________________________________________________
5.   Relationship of Reporting Person(s) to Issuer
     (Check all applicable)

     [X]  Director                             [ ]  10% Owner
     [ ]  Officer (give title below)           [_]  Other (specify below)

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6.   If Amendment, Date of Original (Month/Year)

________________________________________________________________________________
7.   Individual or Joint/Group Filing (Check applicable line)

     [X]  Form filed by One Reporting Person
     [_]  Form filed by more than One Reporting Person
________________________________________________________________________________

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           Table I -- Non-Derivative Securities Beneficially Owned
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                                      2.            3.              4.
                                      Amount of     Ownership       Nature of
                                      Securities    Form: Direct    Indirect
1.                                    Beneficially  (D) or          Beneficial
Title of Security                     Owned         Indirect (I)    Ownership
(Instr. 4)                            (Instr. 4)    (Instr. 5)      (Instr. 5)
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No securities owned
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Reminder: Report on a separate line for each class of securities beneficially
          owned directly or indirectly.

* If the form is filed by more than one reporting person, see Instruction
  5(b)(v).

                                                                          (Over)
                                                                  SEC 1473(7-96)

FORM 3 (continued)

Table II -- DERIVATIVE SECURITIES ACQUIRED, DISPOSED OF, OR BENEFICIALLY OWNED
         (e.g., puts, calls, warrants, options, convertible securities)

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                                                                              5.
                                      3.                                      Owner-
                                      Title and Amount                        ship           6.
                    2.                of Securities              4.           Form of        Nature
                    Date              Underlying                 Conver-      Deriv-         of
                    Exercisable and   Derivative                 sion or      ative          Indirect
                    Expiration Date   Security                   Exercise     Secur-         Bene-
1.                  (Month/Day/Year)  (Instr. 4)                 Price        ity:           ficial
Title of            ----------------  -------------------------  of           Direct (D)     Owner-
Derivative          Date     Expira-  Title    Amount or Number  Deri-        or             ship
Security            Exer-    tion              of                vative       Indirect (I)   (Instr.
(Instr. 4)          cisable  Date              Shares            Security     (Instr.5)      5)
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Explanation of Responses:

*Employee stock option granted pursuant to The Washington
Post Company Stock Option Plan.

        s/Alice M. Rivlin by Diana M. Daniels             September 6, 2002
- ---------------------------------------------            -----------------------
      **Signature of Reporting Person                             Date
        Alice M. Rivlin by Diana M. Daniels

**     Intentional misstatements or omissions of facts constitute Federal
       Criminal Violations. See 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 15 U.S.C. 78ff(a).

Note:  File three copies of this Form, one of which must be manually signed.
       If space provided is insufficient, see Instruction 6 for procedure.

                                                                          Page 2

THE WASHINGTON POST COMPANY
LIMITED POWER OF ATTORNEY FOR
SECTION 16 REPORTING OBLIGATIONS
Know all by these presents, that the undersigned hereby makes,
constitutes and appoints each of Diana M. Daniels, John B. Morse Jr,
Wallace Cooney and John F. Hockenberry, each acting individually,
as the undersigned's true and lawful attorney-in-fact, with full
power and authority as hereinafter described
on behalf of and in the name, place and stead of the undersigned to:
(1)     prepare, execute, acknowledge, deliver and file any and
all statements, reports and forms (including Forms 3, 4, and 5 and
any amendments and supplements thereto) with respect to the
ownership and changes in ownership of equity
securities of The Washington Post Company, a Delaware corporation
(the "Company"), and derivatives of such equity securities, with
the United States Securities and Exchange
Commission, any national securities exchanges and the Company,
as considered necessary or advisable under Section 16(a) of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the rules and regulations
promulgated thereunder, as amended from time to time (the
"Exchange Act");
(2)     seek or obtain, as the undersigned's representative and on the
undersigned's behalf, information on transactions in the Company's
securities from any third party, including brokers, employee
benefit plan administrators and trustees, and the
undersigned hereby authorizes any such person to release any
such information to the undersigned and approves and ratifies
any such release of information; and
(3)     perform any and all other acts which in the discretion of
such attorney-in-fact are necessary or desirable for and on behalf
of the undersigned in connection with the foregoing.
The undersigned acknowledges that:
(1)     this Power of Attorney authorizes, but does not require, each such
attorney-in-fact to act in their discretion on information provided
to such attorney-in-fact without independent verification of
such information;
(2)     any documents prepared and/or executed by either such
attorney-in-fact on behalf of the undersigned pursuant to this
Power of Attorney will be in such form and will contain such
information and disclosure as such attorney-in-fact, in his or her
discretion, deems necessary or desirable;
(3)     neither the Company nor either of such attorneys-in-fact
assumes (i) any liability for the undersigned's responsibility
to comply with the requirement of the Exchange Act, (ii) any
liability of the undersigned for any failure to comply with such
requirements, or (iii) any obligation or liability of the undersigned
for profit disgorgement under Section 16(b) of the Exchange Act; and
(4)     this Power of Attorney does not relieve the undersigned from
responsibility for compliance with the undersigned's obligations
under the Exchange Act, including without limitation the
reporting requirements under Section 16 of the Exchange Act.
The undersigned hereby gives and grants each of the foregoing
attorneys-in-fact full power and authority to do and perform all
and every act and thing whatsoever requisite, necessary or
appropriate to be done in and about the foregoing matters as fully
to all intents and purposes as the undersigned might or could do
if present, hereby ratifying all that each such attorney-in-fact of,
for and on behalf of the undersigned, shall lawfully do or cause to
be done by virtue of this Limited Power of Attorney.
This Power of Attorney shall remain in full force and effect until
revoked by the undersigned in a signed writing delivered to each such
attorney-in-fact.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned has caused this Power of Attorney to
be executed as of this 28th day of August, 2002.

                                           s/Alice M. Rivlin
                                        Signature

                                           s/Alice M. Rivlin
                                        Print Name

STATE OF:    District of Columbia       )
                                        )
COUNTY OF ____________          )
On this 28th day of August, 2002, Alice Rivlin personally appeared
before me, and acknowledged that s/he executed the foregoing instrument
for the purposes therein contained.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and official seal.

                                s/A.E. Burnett
                                A.E. Burnett
                                Notary Public, District of Columbia

                                My Commission Expires:  7-31-2007