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“Things happen.” A mere phrase. That was enough for Donald Trump to effectively dismiss what is probably the most infamous murder of a reporter of the last decade – and in so doing plumbed a new low in his disregard toward journalists, for journalism – and for the facts.

Background Details

The American leader’s dismissal of the murder of well-known reporter the Washington Post columnist came during a press conference with the Saudi leader, Mohammed bin Salman – a man whom the US intelligence found in a recent assessment had ordered the abduction and murder of the journalist in 2018. (The crown prince has denied involvement.)

The US intelligence services were not the sole entities to determine the murder – which took place in the Saudi diplomatic building in Istanbul and in which the 59-year-old journalist was sedated and dismembered – was approved at the top echelons. An investigation led by then UN special rapporteur, the UN investigator, reached similar conclusions.

Global Reactions

For a brief period, nations were unified in their condemnation of Saudi Arabia’s actions. The United States imposed penalties and visa bans in 2021 over the murder, although it stopped short of sanctioning the crown prince himself. Since then, the nation has been slowly rehabilitating itself – and the leader’s trip to Washington seemed to be the final confirmation of that redemption.

White House Remarks

Critics of the regime had roundly condemned the visit. But what was on display at the White House was worse than could have been anticipated. Not only did Trump honor the Saudi leader but he seemed to alter the facts – and then blamed the deceased. Prince Mohammed, Trump claimed when asked, was unaware about the killing – in clear opposition to what his nation’s intelligence services determined four years ago. Moreover, the president said: “A lot of people disliked that person that you’re talking about, whether you approve of him or disapproved, things happen.”

Established Conduct

This represents a fresh and shameful low for a leader who has made no attempt to hide of his contempt for the facts – or for the media. Trump has defamed reporters (he called a news network, whose journalist asked the inquiry about Khashoggi at the Saudi press conference “false information”), scolded them in public (he called one a “piggy” this week for asking about his connection with the disgraced financier the convicted criminal), sued news outlets for large amounts of money in frivolous cases, and called for news outlets he disapproves of to lose their licenses.

He has forced established media out of the official briefing group for declining to use language of his choosing, and he has slashed funding for vital news services at home and crucial free press abroad.

Broader Implications

All of that has created an atmosphere in which journalists are manifestly less safe in the United States, but one in which their targeting – and indeed murder – becomes not just unimportant (“things happen”) but acceptable (“a lot of people disliked that person”).

It is no surprise that that year was the deadliest year on file for the press in the more than 30 years the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has been documenting this information: a ongoing neglect to bring to justice those accountable for journalist killings has established a culture of impunity in which journalists’ killers are actually able to get away with murder and so persist in these actions.

Nowhere is this more evident than in the Middle Eastern nation, which is responsible for the killing of more than 200 journalists in the recent period.

Societal Impact

The effect on the public is deep. Targeting reporters are attacks on the truth. They are attacks on facts. They are violations of our entitlement to information and on our liberty to live freely and safely.

On Thursday, CPJ gathers for its yearly global journalism honors. The statement there is the same as my one for the president: such events may happen. But it is our responsibility to make sure they cease.