(Loss) Earnings Per Share (Details 1) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2022	Jun. 30, 2021	Jun. 30, 2022	Jun. 30, 2021
Schedule of (Loss) Earnings Per Share, Basic and Diluted, Including Two Class Method [Line Items]
Net (loss) income attributable to Graham Holdings Company common stockholders	$ (67,485)	$ 115,358	$ 28,139	$ 227,808
Less: Dividends-common stock outstanding and unvested restricted shares	(7,656)	(7,553)	(23,153)	(22,659)
Undistributed (loss) earnings	$ (75,141)	$ 107,805	$ 4,986	$ 205,149
Percent allocated to common stockholders (1)	100.00%	99.34%	99.40%	99.34%
Undistributed (Loss) Earnings Allocated To Common Stockholders	$ (75,141)	$ 107,089	$ 4,956	$ 203,786
Add: Dividends-common stock outstanding	7,610	7,503	23,016	22,508
Numerator for basic (loss) earnings per share	(67,531)	114,592	27,972	226,294
Add: Additional undistributed earnings due to dilutive stock options	0	2	0	4
Numerator for diluted (loss) earnings per share	$ (67,531)	$ 114,594	$ 27,972	$ 226,298
Weighted average shares outstanding (shares)	4,842	4,968	4,857	4,968
Denominator for diluted (loss) earnings per share (shares)	4,842	4,985	4,870	4,981
Graham Holdings Company Common Stockholders:
Basic (loss) income per common share (in usd per share)	$ (13.95)	$ 23.07	$ 5.76	$ 45.55
Diluted (loss) income per common share (in usd per share)	$ (13.95)	$ 22.99	$ 5.74	$ 45.43
Stock Option Plan [Member]
Schedule of (Loss) Earnings Per Share, Basic and Diluted, Including Two Class Method [Line Items]
Add: Effect of dilutive stock options (shares)	0	17	13	13