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“Incidents take place.” A mere phrase. That was enough for Donald Trump to brush off what is arguably the most infamous murder of a reporter of the last decade – and in so doing sank to a fresh depth in his disregard toward the press, for the media – and for the truth.

Background Details

The US president’s dismissal of the murder of well-known reporter the Washington Post columnist came during a media briefing with the Saudi crown prince, MBS – a man whom the CIA found in a recent assessment had ordered the kidnap and killing of the Washington Post columnist in that year. (Prince Mohammed has rejected accusations.)

The American spy agencies were not the sole entities to determine the murder – which occurred in the Saudi consulate in Turkey and in which the 59-year-old journalist was drugged and cut apart – was signed off at the highest levels. An investigation led by then UN special rapporteur, the UN investigator, reached similar conclusions.

International Response

For a brief period, nations were in agreement in their criticism of Saudi Arabia’s actions. The US imposed sanctions and travel restrictions in that year over the murder, although it refrained of penalizing the crown prince himself. Since then, the kingdom has been slowly rehabilitating itself – and the leader’s trip 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 evident at the White House was worse than could have been imagined. Not only did Trump honor the Saudi leader but he effectively rewrote the facts – and then blamed the victim. Prince Mohammed, he claimed when asked, was unaware about the killing – in direct contradiction to what his nation’s spy agencies concluded previously. Moreover, Trump said: “A lot of people didn’t like that gentleman that you’re talking about, whether you approve of him or didn’t like him, incidents occur.”

Pattern of Behavior

This marks a new and abject point for a president who has made little secret of his disdain for the facts – or for the press. He has smeared journalists (he called ABC news, whose journalist asked the inquiry about the journalist at the Saudi press conference “fake news”), scolded them in public (he called one a “rude name” this week for asking about his relationship with the convicted sex offender financier the convicted criminal), taken legal action against media organizations for eye-watering sums of money in vexatious law suits, and called for news outlets he doesn’t like to lose their licenses.

He has forced veteran news services out of the White House press pool for declining to use language of his preference, and he has gutted financial support for essential public media at home and crucial free press abroad.

Broader Implications

All of that has created an environment in which reporters are clearly more vulnerable in the United States, but one in which their victimization – and indeed murder – becomes not just unimportant (“things happen”) but acceptable (“a lot of people didn’t like that person”).

It is no surprise that 2024 was the deadliest year on file for journalists in the more than 30 years the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has been tracking this data: a ongoing neglect to bring to justice 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 persist in these actions.

Nowhere is this more evident than in Israel, which is responsible for the killing of more than 200 media workers in the past two years.

Societal Impact

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

On Thursday, the Committee to Protect Journalists gathers for its annual International Press Freedom awards. The statement there is the identical as my message for Trump: these things may happen. But it is our responsibility to make sure they cease.