Ann Caulkins said the reductions, which amount to more than 9 percent of the staff, would be achieved by Oct. 3 through voluntary buyouts if possible, by layoffs if necessary, the newspaper reported. The cuts will cross department lines, she said.

The Observer is caught in the same situation facing the newspaper industry across the United States -- falling advertising revenues in a lethargic economy and watershed changes in the news media, in large part because of the Internet.

"The economy is really, really tough," Caulkins told the newsroom, adding she couldn't promise the cuts were over.