The Deseret News, too, is in the process of laying off up to 35 employees — or 17 1/2 percent — of its workforce by mid-July.

The public may ultimately suffer from the lack of competition in the news business, said University of Utah communication professor Robert Avery.

"Whenever you've got competition, organizations do better work, and that's true of news organizations," he said. "It also has to do with the diversity of the product. (Layoffs) not only affect the quality but the number of voices in the marketplace."

The changes in quality may be subtle and people may not at first notice, said Weber State University communication professor Terri Reddout.

"If their favorite anchor is still there, putting out the news, they don't know how hard it is behind the scenes," she said.

---

E-mail: lhancock@desnews.com