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“Stuff occurs.” Just two words. That’s all it took for Donald Trump to effectively dismiss what is probably the most infamous murder of a reporter of the past ten years – and in so doing plumbed a new low in his disregard toward journalists, for journalism – and for the truth.

The Context

The US president’s dismissal of the murder of prominent journalist Jamal Khashoggi came during a press conference with the Saudi leader, Mohammed bin Salman – a man whom the US intelligence concluded in a 2021 report had ordered the kidnap and killing of the Washington Post columnist in 2018. (The crown prince has rejected accusations.)

The American spy agencies were not the sole entities to conclude the murder – which occurred in the Saudi consulate in Turkey and in which the late journalist was drugged and dismembered – was approved at the top echelons. An investigation led by former UN expert, the UN investigator, reached similar conclusions.

International Response

For a brief period, governments were unified in their criticism of the kingdom’s conduct. The United States imposed sanctions and visa bans in 2021 over the murder, although it stopped short of penalizing the crown prince himself. Since then, the nation has been gradually restoring itself – and the crown prince’s visit to Washington seemed to be the final confirmation of that redemption.

Presidential Comments

Critics of the government had strongly criticized the meeting. But what was on display at the presidential residence was worse than could have been imagined. Not only did the president fete the Saudi leader but he seemed to alter history – and then blamed the victim. The crown prince, Trump claimed when asked, knew nothing about the killing – in clear opposition to what his country’s own spy agencies concluded four years ago. Moreover, the president said: “Many individuals disliked that gentleman that you’re talking about, whether you approve of him or didn’t like him, incidents occur.”

Pattern of Behavior

This represents a new and abject low for a leader who has made little secret of his contempt for the facts – or for the press. Trump has defamed reporters (he called a news network, whose reporter asked the question about the journalist at the media event “fake news”), scolded them in public (he called one a “rude name” this week for asking about his connection with the convicted sex offender financier the convicted criminal), taken legal action against media organizations for large amounts of money in vexatious law suits, and called for media groups he doesn’t like to lose their licenses.

He has pressured veteran news services out of the official briefing group for refusing to use terminology of his choosing, and he has slashed financial support for essential public media at domestically and vital independent media abroad.

Broader Implications

All of that has fostered an environment in which reporters are manifestly less safe in the US, but one in which their victimization – and indeed murder – becomes not just unimportant (“things happen”) but acceptable (“many individuals disliked that person”).

It is no surprise that that year was the deadliest year on record 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 established a environment without consequences in which journalists’ killers are actually able to escape punishment and so persist in these actions.

In no place is this more evident than in Israel, which is accountable for the deaths of over two hundred media workers in the past two years.

Societal Impact

The impact on society 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 gathers for its yearly global journalism honors. The statement there is the same as my one for Trump: these things may happen. But it is our duty to make sure they cease.