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“Stuff occurs.” Just two words. That was enough for Donald Trump to brush off what is arguably the most infamous journalist killing of the past ten years – and in so doing plumbed a new low in his disregard toward the press, for journalism – and for the facts.

The Context

The American leader’s dismissive attitude of the murder 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 2021 report had orchestrated the kidnap and killing of the journalist in that year. (The crown prince has rejected accusations.)

The US intelligence services were not the sole entities to conclude the murder – which occurred 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, Agnès Callamard, reached similar conclusions.

International Response

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

White House Remarks

Opponents of the regime had roundly condemned the meeting. But what was on display at the White House was worse than could have been anticipated. Not only did the president honor Prince Mohammed but he seemed to alter the facts – and then pointed fingers at the deceased. Prince Mohammed, Trump claimed when asked, knew nothing 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 disapproved, things happen.”

Pattern of Behavior

This marks a new and abject point for a leader who has made no attempt to hide of his disdain for the truth – or for the media. Trump has defamed reporters (he called a news network, whose reporter asked the inquiry about Khashoggi at the media event “false information”), scolded them in open settings (he called one a “rude name” this week for asking about his relationship with the convicted sex offender 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 veteran news services out of the White House press pool for refusing to use terminology of his choosing, and he has gutted funding for vital news services at home and crucial free press internationally.

Broader Implications

All of that has created an environment in which reporters are manifestly less safe in the US, but one in which their victimization – and indeed killing – becomes not just insignificant (“things happen”) but acceptable (“a lot of people didn’t like that person”).

It is no surprise that 2024 was the most lethal year on record for the press in the over three decades the press freedom organization has been documenting this data: a ongoing neglect to bring to justice those accountable for journalist killings has created a environment without consequences in which journalists’ killers are literally able to escape punishment and so persist in these actions.

Nowhere is this clearer than in Israel, which is accountable for the killing of more than 200 journalists in the recent period.

Societal Impact

The impact on the public is profound. Attacks on journalists are assaults on facts. They are undermining of reality. They are attacks on our rights to know and on our freedom to live freely and safely.

This week, the Committee to Protect Journalists meets for its annual global journalism honors. The statement there is the same as my message for Trump: these things may happen. But it is our duty to make sure they do not.