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“Things happen.” A mere phrase. That’s all it took for the US president to effectively dismiss what is arguably the most infamous murder of a reporter of the past ten years – and in so doing sank to a fresh depth in his contempt for journalists, for the media – and for the truth.

Background Details

The US president’s dismissal of the killing of well-known reporter the Washington Post columnist came during a press conference with the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman – a man whom the US intelligence found in a 2021 report had orchestrated the kidnap and killing of the Washington Post columnist in 2018. (Prince Mohammed has denied involvement.)

The American spy agencies were not the only ones to conclude the homicide – which occurred in the Saudi diplomatic building in Turkey and in which the late Khashoggi was sedated and dismembered – was approved at the top echelons. An investigation led by then UN special rapporteur, Agnès Callamard, reached similar conclusions.

Global Reactions

For a brief period, governments were in agreement in their condemnation of Saudi Arabia’s actions. The US imposed penalties and travel restrictions in that year over the murder, although it refrained of sanctioning Prince Mohammed himself. Since then, the kingdom has been gradually restoring itself – and the leader’s trip to Washington seemed to be the final confirmation of that redemption.

Presidential Comments

Opponents of the government had roundly condemned the visit. But what was on display at the presidential residence was more alarming than could have been anticipated. Not only did Trump honor the Saudi leader but he seemed to alter the facts – and then pointed fingers at the deceased. The crown prince, Trump claimed when asked, was unaware about the murder – in clear opposition to what his nation’s spy agencies determined previously. Moreover, Trump said: “A lot of people didn’t like that gentleman that you’re talking about, whether you like him or didn’t like him, incidents occur.”

Pattern of Behavior

This represents a new and abject low for a leader who has made no attempt to hide of his contempt for the facts – or for the press. Trump has smeared reporters (he called a news network, whose journalist asked the inquiry about the journalist at the media event “fake news”), scolded them in open settings (he called one a “rude name” this week for asking about his connection with the convicted sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein), taken legal action against media organizations for eye-watering sums of money in vexatious law suits, and called for media groups he doesn’t like to lose their licenses.

He has forced veteran news services out of the official briefing group for refusing to use terminology of his choosing, and he has gutted funding for essential public media at home and crucial free press internationally.

Wider Consequences

All of that has fostered an environment in which journalists are manifestly less safe in the US, but one in which their victimization – and indeed murder – becomes not just unimportant (“incidents occur”) but tolerated (“many individuals didn’t like that person”).

It is no surprise that that year was the deadliest year on file for journalists in the more than 30 years the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has been documenting this data: a ongoing neglect to hold those responsible for journalist killings has created a culture of impunity in which those who murder reporters are actually able to get away with murder and so persist in these actions.

Nowhere is this clearer than in Israel, which is accountable for the killing of over two hundred journalists in the recent period.

Societal Impact

The impact on the public is deep. Targeting reporters are assaults on facts. They are undermining of reality. They are violations of our entitlement to information and on our freedom to live freely and safely.

On Thursday, the Committee to Protect Journalists meets for its yearly International Press Freedom awards. My message at the event is the identical as my message for Trump: such events may occur. But it is our responsibility to make sure they cease.