New Hampshire Public Television laid off five employees this week, citing the bad economy. Four vacant positions also will not be filled. “We tried in every way we could to reduce expenditures in other areas,” spokeswoman Grace Lessner told Foster’s Daily Democrat. “It’s a very unhappy thing to let people go.” The paper added that last year, NHPTV became a wholly owned nonprofit subsidiary of the University System of New Hampshire after over 40 years of the University of New Hampshire having the authority for the station’s day-to-day operations.