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“Incidents take place.” A mere phrase. That was enough for Donald Trump to effectively dismiss what is probably the most notorious journalist killing of the past ten years – and in so doing sank to a fresh depth in his contempt for the press, for the media – and for the facts.

Background Details

The US president’s dismissive attitude of the killing of prominent journalist Jamal Khashoggi came during a press conference 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 2018. (Prince Mohammed has denied involvement.)

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 Khashoggi was drugged and cut apart – was approved at the highest levels. An investigation led by former UN expert, the UN investigator, reached similar conclusions.

Global Reactions

For a short time, governments were unified in their condemnation of Saudi Arabia’s actions. The US imposed penalties and visa bans in that year over the killing, although it refrained of sanctioning Prince Mohammed himself. Since then, the kingdom has been gradually restoring itself – and the leader’s trip to Washington seemed to be the final confirmation of that rehabilitation.

White House Remarks

Opponents of the regime had strongly criticized the meeting. But what was evident at the White House was more alarming than could have been anticipated. Not only did Trump fete Prince Mohammed but he effectively rewrote history – and then blamed the deceased. Prince Mohammed, Trump claimed when asked, was unaware about the murder – in clear opposition to what his nation’s intelligence services concluded four years ago. Moreover, the president said: “Many individuals disliked that person that you’re talking about, whether you like him or didn’t like him, things happen.”

Pattern of Behavior

This represents a fresh and shameful low for a president who has made no attempt to hide of his contempt for the facts – or for the press. Trump has defamed journalists (he called ABC news, whose reporter asked the question about Khashoggi at the media event “false information”), scolded them in open settings (he called one a “piggy” this week for asking about his relationship with the convicted sex offender financier the convicted criminal), taken legal action against news outlets for eye-watering sums of money in frivolous cases, and called for news outlets he doesn’t like to lose their licenses.

He has pressured established media out of the official briefing group for refusing to use terminology of his preference, and he has gutted financial support for vital news services at home and crucial free press internationally.

Broader Implications

All of that has fostered an atmosphere in which reporters are clearly more vulnerable in the US, but one in which their targeting – and indeed murder – becomes not just insignificant (“things happen”) but acceptable (“many individuals 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 documenting this information: a persistent failure to bring to justice those responsible for journalist killings has created a culture of impunity in which those who murder reporters are actually able to escape punishment and so persist in these actions.

In no place is this more evident than in the Middle Eastern nation, which is accountable for the deaths of more than 200 media workers in the past two years.

Effect on Society

The effect on society is deep. Attacks on journalists are assaults on facts. They are undermining of reality. They are violations of our rights to know and on our freedom to live freely and securely.

This week, CPJ meets for its yearly global journalism honors. My message at the event is the same as my one for Trump: these things may happen. But it is our duty to make sure they do not.