Is Washington Post Next to Be Ripped?

For its part, the company says it doesn't have any plans to separate its newspaper assets from its high-growth education business.

"We're comfortable with both the assets and structures we have," says Washington Post spokeswoman Rima Calderon.

But publishers Belo and Scripps made similar comments before they succumbed to pressure from shareholders and split themselves in two in order to free their assets with more growth potential from the drag of their newspaper publishing businesses.

Others in the industry have taken even more painful steps amid the carnage. Knight-Ridder and Tribune (TRB Quote) were pushed onto the selling block by restless shareholders. The Bancroft family couldn't turn down Rupert Murdoch's $5 billion offer to buy their company, Dow Jones (DJ Quote), and its prize asset, The Wall Street Journal.

The Times remains intact even as shareholders have clamored for change and its stock has been pummeled. Its largest non-family shareholder, Morgan Stanley Investments, recently dumped its 7% stake after the company refused to follow the advice of portfolio manager Hassan Elmasry and abolish its dual-class share structure, which preserves control over the company in the hands of the Sulzberger family.

Unlike Washington Post, the Times isn't diversified -- it's solely a publishing company, having recently sold off its broadcasting business. Aside from the possibility of ditching underperforming newspaper assets such as The Boston Globe, the company has little choice but to beef up its digital presence and scramble for an online business model that will allow it to start growing again. That, or the Sulzbergers could try to take it private without giving up control, and that could be dicey.