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“Things happen.” Just two words. That was enough for the US president to brush off what is arguably the most notorious journalist killing of the past ten years – and in so doing sank to a fresh depth in his disregard toward journalists, for the media – and for the truth.

The Context

The American leader’s dismissal of the killing of prominent journalist the Washington Post columnist came during a press conference with the Saudi leader, MBS – a man whom the CIA found in a recent assessment had orchestrated the abduction and murder of the Washington Post columnist in that year. (The crown prince has denied involvement.)

The American spy agencies were not the only ones to conclude the homicide – which took place in the Saudi diplomatic building in Turkey and in which the 59-year-old journalist was drugged and cut apart – was approved at the highest levels. An inquiry led by then UN special rapporteur, the UN investigator, reached similar conclusions.

Global Reactions

For a short time, nations were in agreement in their condemnation of the kingdom’s conduct. The United States imposed penalties and travel restrictions in 2021 over the killing, although it refrained of penalizing the crown prince himself. Since then, the kingdom has been gradually restoring itself – and the leader’s trip to the US capital seemed to be the final confirmation of that rehabilitation.

White House Remarks

Critics of the government had strongly criticized the visit. But what was on display at the White House was worse than could have been anticipated. Not only did the president fete the Saudi leader but he effectively rewrote history – and then pointed fingers at the victim. Prince Mohammed, Trump claimed when asked, was unaware about the killing – in direct contradiction to what his country’s own intelligence services concluded four years ago. Moreover, the president said: “Many individuals didn’t like that gentleman that you’re talking about, whether you like him or didn’t like him, incidents occur.”

Established Conduct

This represents a fresh and shameful low for a president who has made no attempt to hide of his disdain for the facts – or for the press. He has smeared reporters (he called ABC news, whose journalist asked the inquiry about Khashoggi at the Saudi press conference “false information”), berated them in public (he called one a “piggy” this week for asking about his connection with the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein), sued news outlets for large amounts of money in frivolous cases, and called for media groups he doesn’t like 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 financial support for vital news services at domestically and vital independent media internationally.

Broader Implications

All of that has fostered an environment in which reporters are clearly more vulnerable in the US, but one in which their targeting – and indeed killing – becomes not just unimportant (“things happen”) but acceptable (“many individuals didn’t like that person”).

It is no surprise that that year was the deadliest year on record for journalists in the over three decades the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has been tracking this information: a persistent failure to bring to justice those accountable for journalist killings has created a environment without consequences in which those who murder reporters 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.

Effect on Society

The impact on the public is profound. Attacks on journalists are assaults on facts. They are attacks on facts. They are attacks on our entitlement to information and on our liberty to live freely and safely.

On Thursday, the Committee to Protect Journalists meets for its annual International Press Freedom awards. My message at the event is the same as my message for Trump: such events may occur. But it is our duty to make sure they do not.