‘A Murderous Autocrat Who Kills Journalists’
As President Donald Trump’s marathon meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin was beginning, reporters filmed and photographed the two world leaders getting to know one another before being ordered to leave the room Friday afternoon at the G-20 summit. President Putin was caught on camera asking President Trump, “These are the ones that insulted you?”
The Guardian’s Alex Luhn notes Putin was “gesturing at the journalists being ushered out of the room.”
“Chuckles all around,” he said of the two men and their aides.
In America, Trump’s hated of the press is legendary. Hardly a week goes by, it seems, when he doesn’t attack a news outlet or a journalist, when he makes the world just a little more dangerous for reporters, when he makes it all the more likely that journalists will see one of their own harmed or killed as a result of his false “fake news!” and “integrity” claims.
And in Russia, President Putin (allegedly) has reporters he doesn’t like killed (see below).
Of course, Trump’s terrible relationship with the press, especially his tweeting of a violent GIF last weekend, makes the two presidents laughing about reporters all the more disturbing.Â
Here’s how some responded:
Politifact in January of 2016 reported “Russia currently ranks 180 out of 199 countries for press freedom, behind Iraq, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to the international watchdog Freedom House.”
“Though it has never been known for its media independence, Russia’s press freedom and ranking have continuously decreased in the past decade under Putin,” adding, “at least 34 journalists have been murdered in Russia since 2000.”
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