Reeling from the resignations of eight of its nine top managers, the new owners of KHON-TV said they plan to scale back the number of layoffs at the local television station.

Sandy Benton, chief operating officer of California-based Montecito Broadcast Group, said the company now plans to lay off fewer than the 35 employees that it originally planned to terminate.

Benton said the company is still evaluating KHON's personnel situation and won't have a firm layoff number until Friday. KHON employs about 112 people.

"There will be less than 35, but I can't tell you at this point whether it's going to be quite a bit less than 35," Benton said.

Montecito, formerly known as SJL Broadcast Group, stunned KHON's employees last month when it announced that it planned to cut about a third of the employees, many of whom would be replaced by automation.

The cuts prompted eight of the station's top managers, including general manager Rick Blangiardi and news director Ron Comings, to resign in protest.

The staff reductions also prompted popular news anchor Joe Moore to criticize the new owners on the air.

Yesterday, Montecito announced that it had appointed executive producer Lori Silva its new news director, replacing Comings.

Silva, a longtime broadcast executive, began her career in local news at KHON 24 years ago. She's held executive producer positions at both KITV and KHON.

"It will be business as usual in our newsroom," said KHON's new general manager, Joe McNamara.

Moore, who said he plans to remain with the station until his contract runs out in 2009, said he urged Silva to "get the promise of minimal cuts to our already understaffed newsroom in writing" before she took the job as news director. "If the promise turns out to be true, great, but look what it cost us ... an excellent GM and eight superior department heads," Moore said in an e-mail yesterday.

"And what about the planned cuts to the other departments?"

Montecito and New York-based The Blackstone Group acquired KHON and three Mainland stations from Emmis Communications Corp. last month in a deal valued at $259 million.

The recent turmoil at KHON has raised concerns among some of the station's biggest advertisers.

Nick Ng Pack, CEO of Milici Valenti Ng Pack Advertising, said Moore is a primary asset at the station and added that he supports the news anchor's outspoken stance on the cuts.

Ng Pack, whose agency represents First Hawaiian Bank, McDonald's Restaurants, Matson Navigation Co. and Hawaiian Telcom, said his agency is watching the developments closely but has made no decision on whether to seek changes to its advertising agreements.

"I fully support Joe and his position that people are the most important asset," Ng Pack said.

Reach Rick Daysog at rdaysog@honoluluadvertiser.com.