Even Trump’s Glib Jokes Depend on “Hate” and Appeals to Violent Impulses

CNN has reported the following comments made by Donald Trump about the journalists who have been covering his campaign:

“Even Donald Trump has limits.

“The Republican front-runner–who frequently lambasts the media as ‘scum’ or ‘horrible’–reassured reporters at rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan on Monday that he had no desire to execute the press who cover him.

“’I hate some of these people, I hate ’em,’ Trump told the crowd. ‘I would never kill them. I would never do that.’

Then he decided to reconsider.

“’Uh, let’s see, uh?’ he said aloud, his voice rising. ‘No, I would never do that.’

“Trump’s comments on journalists came after he spoke about Russian President Vladimir Putin, who lavished Trump with praise last week.

“Claims that Putin ordered the killings of Russian journalists are well-documented, but Trump has argued that those deaths are disputed and without evidence.

“Trump did charge once again that some of the reporters in the back of the room are ‘such lying disgusting people,’ but as the crowd turned to angrily face those reporters, Trump pulled them back.

“’But no, I would never kill them,’ he said. ‘I think that would be despicable.’”

All of this might be mildly amusing, rather than despicable, self-serving demagoguery, except for the fact that reporting fairly and accurately on politics is, internationally, a very dangerous occupation. The Committee to Protect Journalists [https://www.cpj.org/] exists precisely because such reporting has been so widely under attack literally as well as figuratively. CPJ publishes an annual list of journalists killed for simply attempting to do their jobs. The list does not include journalists subjected to non-fatal physical attacks or other types of intimidation.

69 Journalists Killed in 2015/Motive Confirmed

Terminology explained
Zakaria Ibrahim, Al-Jazeera

December 7, 2015, in Taldou, Homs province, Syria

Hindia Haji Mohamed, Radio Mogadishu, Somali National TV

December 3, 2015, in Mogadishu, Somalia

Guillaume Barreau-Decherf, Freelance

November 13, 2015, in Paris, France

Ítalo Eduardo Diniz Barros, Blog Ítalo Diniz

November 13, 2015, in Governador Nunes Freire, Brazil

Israel Gonçalves Silva, Rádio Itaenga FM

November 10, 2015, in Lagoa de Itaenga, Brazil

Ahmed Abu al-Hamza, SMART News Agency, Hama Media Center

November 6, 2015, in Sukayk, Hama province, Syria

Batoul Mokhles al-Warrar, Noor al-Sham; Radio Damascus

November 3, 2015, in Damascus, Syria

Zaman Mehsud, Daily Ummat, Daily Nai Baat

November 3, 2015, in Tank, Pakistan

Mustaf Abdi Noor , Freelance

November 1, 2015, in Mogadishu, Somalia

Faisal Arefin Dipan, Jagriti Prokashoni

October 31, 2015, in Dhaka , Bangladesh

Fares Hamadi, Eye on the Homeland

October 30, 2015, in Urfa, Turkey

Ibrahim Abd al-Qader, Eye on the Homeland, Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently

October 30, 2015, in Urfa, Turkey

Jomaa Al-Ahmad (Abu al-Nour al-Halabi), Shahba Press Agency

October 27, 2015, in Aleppo, Syria

Wasem Aledel, Maarat Media Center

October 23, 2015, in Binin, Idlib province , Syria

Obada Ghazal, SMART News Agency

September 26, 2015, in Taftanaz, Idlib province, Syria

Bilal Sharaf al-Deen, Al-Masirah TV

September 17, 2015, in Sana’a, Yemen

Yahya Abdul Hamid, Radio Rasheed

September 12, 2015, in Mosul, Iraq

George Abanga, Success FM, Peace FM

September 10, 2015, in Sankore, Ghana

Flor Alba Núñez Vargas, Red Noticias and La Preferida Estereo

September 10, 2015, in Pitalito, Colombia

Adam Ward, WDBJ7

August 26, 2015, in Smith Mountain Lake, Virginia, USA

Alison Parker, WDBJ7

August 26, 2015, in Smith Mountain Lake, Virginia, USA

Niloy Neel, Freelance

August 7, 2015, in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Gleydson Carvalho, Radio Liberdade FM 90.3

August 6, 2015, in Camocim, Brazil

Rubén Espinosa Becerril, Proceso, AVC Noticias, Cuartoscuro

July 31, 2015, in Mexico City, Mexico

Thaer al-Ajlani, Sham FM; al-Watan

July 27, 2015, in Damascus, Syria

Jalaa al-Abadi, Nineveh Reporters Network

July 15, 2015, in Mosul, Iraq

Filadelfo Sánchez Sarmiento, La Favorita 103.3FM La Voz de la Sierra Sur

July 2, 2015, in Miahuatlán de Porfirio Díaz, Mexico

Mohammed al-Asfar, Al-Jazeera

June 26, 2015, in Daraa, Syria

Łukasz Masiak, Nasza Mława, Nasza Mława

June 14, 2015, in Mława, Poland

Jagendra Singh, Freelance

June 8, 2015, in Shahjahanpur district, Uttar Pradesh, India

Ammar al-Shami, Qasioun News

May 31, 2015, in Marj al-Sultan, Eastern Ghouta, Syria

Djalma Santos da Conceição, RCA FM

May 22 or 23, 2015, in Conceição da Feira, Brazil

Abdullah Qabil, Yemen Youth TV, Belqees TV

May 21, 2015, in Dhamar, Yemen

Youssef al-Ayzari, Suhail TV

May 21, 2015, in Dhamar, Yemen

Evany José Metzker, Coruja do Vale

May 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, or 18, 2015, in Padre Paraíso, Brazil

Ananta Bijoy Das, Freelance

May 12, 2015, in Sylhet, Bangladesh

Armando Saldaña Morales, La Ke Buena 100.9 FM

May 2,3 or 4, 2015, in Oaxaca, Mexico

Firas al-Baher, Nineveh al-Ghad

May 1, 2015, in Mosul, Iraq

John Kituyi, Mirror Weekly

April 30, 2015, in Eldoret, Kenya

Daud Ali Omar, Radio Baidoa

April 29, 2015, in Baidoa, Somalia

Thaer Al-Ali, Rai al-Nas

April 26, 2015, in Mosul, Iraq

Muftah al-Qatrani, Al-Anwar

April 22, 2015, in Benghazi, Libya , Libya

Mohamed Shamsan, Yemen Today

April 20, 2015, in Sana’a, Yemen

Humam Najjar (Abu Yazan al-Halabi), Aleppo Today

April 16, 2015, in Aleppo, Syria

Soleil Balanga, Radio Monkoto Soso Aleli

April 16, 2015, in Monkoto, Equateur Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Jamal Khalifeh, Freelance

April 1, 2015, in Yarmouk, Damascus, Syria

Washiqur Rahman Babu, Freelance

March 30, 2015, in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Fadel al-Hadidi, Mosul al-Youm; Sada al-Iraq

Unknown, in Mosul, Iraq

Danilo López, Prensa Libre

March 10, 2015, in Mazatenango, Guatemala

Noureddine Hashim, Al Etihad Press

March 8, 2015, in Damascus, Syria

Gerardo Ceferino Servían, Ciudad Nueva FM

March 5, 2015, in Ponta Porã, Brazil

Serhiy Nikolayev, Segodnya

February 28, 2015, in Peski, Ukraine

Avijit Roy, Freelance

February 26, 2015, in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Kenji Goto, Freelance

January 2015, in Unknown, Syria

Randa George, Raja FM

January 25, 2015, in Western Bahr al Ghazal state, South Sudan

Dalia Marko, Raja FM

January 25, 2015, in Western Bahr al Ghazal state, South Sudan

Musa Mohamed, Raja FM

January 25, 2015, in Western Bahr al Ghazal state, South Sudan

Boutros Martin, South Sudan Television

January 25, 2015, in Western Bahr al Ghazal state, South Sudan

Adam Juma, Raja FM

January 25, 2015, in Western Bahr al Ghazal state, South Sudan

Bernard Maris, Freelance