Provo Daily Herald ends daily opinion page

Media • Move comes in wake of layoffs at Utah County paper.

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The Provo Daily Herald announced this week it no longer will produce a daily opinion page, the latest move at the paper that has included the layoff of 10 percent of its workforce, including its executive editor.

In a story published Sunday, the paper's editors wrote that it would no longer have a daily opinion page but would still run a section on Sundays "made up of community voices. We will publish letters to the editor and guest opinions from our readers and other members of the community, as well as the occasional debate between leaders on specific topics. The Herald will occasionally weigh in if there is an issue that affects us as a newspaper, but for the most part, we will focus on community opinions."

Heidi Toth's column, "Left in Utah," will continue to appear on Thursdays on an op-ed page.

Earlier this month, the paper's owner, Davenport, Iowa-based Lee Enterprises, laid off nine employees from various departments. Several days later, the paper also laid off its executive editor, Randy Wright.

Lee Enterprises, which also owns the St. Louis Post Dispatch, has seen significant declines in advertising revenue in the past year, as has much of the rest of the newspaper industry.