The President's Dismissal on Journalist's Murder Signals a New Low.

“Things happen.” Just two words. That was enough for the US president 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 contempt for journalists, for the media – and for the truth.

The Context

The US president’s dismissive attitude of the murder of well-known reporter Jamal Khashoggi came during a press conference with the Saudi crown prince, MBS – a man whom the CIA found in a 2021 report had ordered the abduction and murder of the journalist in that year. (The crown prince has denied involvement.)

The American spy agencies were not the only ones to determine the homicide – which took place in the Saudi diplomatic building in Turkey and in which the late journalist was sedated and cut apart – was signed off at the highest levels. An investigation led by former UN expert, the UN investigator, reached comparable findings.

Global Reactions

For a short time, governments were unified in their condemnation of the kingdom’s conduct. The United States imposed penalties and visa bans in that year over the murder, although it refrained of sanctioning Prince Mohammed himself. Since then, the kingdom has been slowly rehabilitating itself – and the crown prince’s visit to Washington seemed to be the ultimate sign of that rehabilitation.

Presidential Comments

Critics of the government had roundly condemned the visit. But what was evident at the White House was worse than could have been imagined. Not only did the president honor the Saudi leader but he effectively rewrote history – and then pointed fingers at the deceased. The crown prince, he claimed when asked, knew nothing about the murder – in clear opposition to what his country’s own intelligence services concluded four years ago. 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.”

Established Conduct

This represents a fresh and shameful low for a leader who has made little secret of his contempt for the truth – or for the press. He has defamed journalists (he called a news network, whose journalist asked the question about the journalist at the media event “fake news”), berated them in open settings (he called one a “rude name” this week for asking about his connection with the convicted sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein), taken legal action against media organizations for eye-watering sums of money in vexatious law suits, and called for news outlets he disapproves of to lose their licenses.

He has pressured established media out of the White House press pool for refusing to use terminology of his choosing, and he has gutted 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 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 gentleman”).

It is no surprise that 2024 was the deadliest year on record for the press in the more than 30 years the press freedom organization has been documenting 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 literally able to get away with murder and so continue to do so.

In no place is this clearer than in Israel, which is responsible for the deaths of more than 200 media workers in the past two years.

Societal Impact

The effect 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 meets for its yearly International Press Freedom awards. My message at the event is the same as my one for Trump: these things may occur. But it is our responsibility to make sure they cease.