As Knight Ridder Goes, So May News Industry

Investor pressure to sell the San Jose-based chain comes as papers across the country are losing circulation at an accelerating pace.

By Joseph Menn and James Rainey, Times Staff Writers

As big shareholders of Knight Ridder Inc. pressure executives to consider selling the nation's second-largest newspaper company, an increasing number of industry veterans say the fight's outcome could write the future of print journalism.

Like other chains, Knight Ridder has responded to readers and advertisers migrating to the Internet by investing in Web versions of the print product, cutting costs and experimenting with free papers.