U.S. press secretary: Government can't help newspapers

In a Monday briefing, U.S. Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters he didn't know what "government can do about it" in response to questions about struggling newspapers, Politico reported.

While stressing President Barack Obama's commitment to "a strong free press," Gibbs called the problems facing the newspaper industry a "tricky area (for the government) to get into."

The press secretary took the occasion to turn the tables on journalists who had called into question Obama's pledge to cut spending saying, "you guys didn't think $100 million meant a lot a few weeks ago...but looking at some of the balance sheets, $100 million seems to mean a lot."