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“Incidents take place.” A mere phrase. That was enough for Donald Trump to effectively dismiss what is probably the most infamous journalist killing of the last decade – and in so doing plumbed a new low in his disregard toward journalists, for the media – and for the facts.

Background Details

The US president’s dismissal of the killing of prominent journalist Jamal Khashoggi came during a media briefing with the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman – a man whom the CIA concluded in a recent assessment had ordered the kidnap and killing of the Washington Post columnist in that year. (The crown prince has denied involvement.)

The US intelligence services were not the only ones to determine the murder – which occurred in the Saudi diplomatic building in Istanbul and in which the late journalist was drugged and dismembered – was signed off at the top echelons. An investigation led by then UN special rapporteur, the UN investigator, reached comparable findings.

International Response

For a brief period, nations were unified in their condemnation of Saudi Arabia’s actions. The United States imposed sanctions and travel restrictions in 2021 over the killing, although it stopped short of penalizing Prince Mohammed himself. Since then, the kingdom has been gradually restoring itself – and the crown prince’s visit to the US capital seemed to be the final confirmation of that redemption.

Presidential Comments

Opponents of the government had roundly condemned the visit. But what was evident at the White House was more alarming than could have been anticipated. Not only did Trump honor Prince Mohammed but he effectively rewrote history – and then pointed fingers at the deceased. The crown prince, Trump claimed when asked, knew nothing about the killing – in direct contradiction to what his nation’s spy agencies determined four years ago. Moreover, the president said: “Many individuals didn’t like that person that you’re talking about, whether you approve of him or didn’t like him, incidents occur.”

Pattern of Behavior

This marks a fresh and shameful point for a president who has made little secret of his contempt for the facts – or for the media. Trump has smeared journalists (he called ABC news, whose journalist asked the question 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 relationship with the disgraced financier the convicted criminal), taken legal action against news outlets for large amounts of money in vexatious law suits, 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 refusing to use language of his choosing, and he has gutted funding for vital news services at home and vital independent media internationally.

Broader Implications

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

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 tracking this information: a persistent failure to hold those accountable for reporter murders has created a culture of impunity in which those who murder reporters are actually able to get away with murder and so continue to do so.

In no place is this more evident than in Israel, which is accountable for the killing of over two hundred media workers in the recent period.

Societal Impact

The impact on society is deep. Attacks on journalists are attacks on the truth. They are attacks on facts. They are violations of our entitlement to information and on our freedom to live freely and safely.

On Thursday, CPJ meets for its annual International Press Freedom awards. My message there is the same as my message for the president: such events may happen. But it is our duty to make sure they do not.