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“Stuff occurs.” A mere phrase. That’s all it took for the US president to effectively dismiss what is arguably the most infamous journalist killing of the last decade – 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 dismissal of the murder of prominent journalist the Washington Post columnist came during a media briefing with the Saudi leader, MBS – a man whom the US intelligence concluded in a 2021 report had orchestrated 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 homicide – which occurred in the Saudi diplomatic building in Turkey and in which the late journalist was sedated and dismembered – was signed off at the top echelons. An inquiry led by former UN expert, Agnès Callamard, reached similar conclusions.

International Response

For a short time, governments were in agreement in their condemnation of Saudi Arabia’s actions. The US imposed sanctions and visa bans in that year over the killing, although it stopped short of sanctioning Prince Mohammed himself. Since then, the kingdom has been gradually restoring itself – and the leader’s trip to the US capital seemed to be the ultimate sign of that redemption.

Presidential Comments

Opponents of the government had strongly criticized the meeting. But what was on display at the White House was more alarming than could have been anticipated. Not only did Trump honor the Saudi leader but he seemed to alter the facts – and then pointed fingers at the deceased. The crown prince, he claimed when asked, was unaware about the murder – in clear opposition to what his country’s own intelligence services determined four years ago. Moreover, the president said: “A lot of people disliked that person that you’re talking about, whether you like him or disapproved, things happen.”

Pattern of Behavior

This represents a fresh and shameful point for a leader who has made no attempt to hide of his contempt for the truth – or for the press. Trump has smeared journalists (he called ABC news, whose journalist asked the inquiry about Khashoggi at the media event “false information”), 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 news outlets for large amounts of money in frivolous cases, and called for media groups he disapproves of to lose their licenses.

He has forced established media out of the White House press pool for declining to use terminology of his choosing, and he has gutted financial support for vital news services at domestically and vital independent media abroad.

Wider Consequences

All of that has fostered an atmosphere in which reporters are manifestly less safe in the United States, but one in which their targeting – and indeed killing – becomes not just unimportant (“things happen”) but acceptable (“a lot of people didn’t like that person”).

It is unsurprising that 2024 was the most lethal year on record for the press in the over three decades the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has been documenting this data: a persistent failure to bring to justice those accountable for journalist killings has established a culture of impunity in which journalists’ killers are actually able to escape punishment and so continue to do so.

Nowhere is this clearer than in the Middle Eastern nation, which is responsible for the killing of more than 200 journalists in the past two years.

Effect on Society

The effect on the public is deep. Attacks on journalists are assaults on facts. They are attacks on facts. They are attacks on our rights to know and on our liberty to exist without fear and securely.

This week, the Committee to Protect Journalists gathers for its annual International Press Freedom awards. My message there is the same as my one for Trump: such events may occur. But it is our responsibility to make sure they cease.