The satirical news organization The Onion’s bid to purchase Alex Jones’ conspiracy theory website Infowars is set to return to a Texas courtroom on Monday. A judge will be determining whether a bankruptcy auction was conducted correctly, as Jones claims fraud and collusion.
Testimony on the November auction and how a trustee selected The Onion over the sole bidder—a Jones-affiliated business that made twice as much money as The Onion—will be presented to U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez in Houston.
Jones filed for personal bankruptcy in late 2022 after being forced to pay almost $1.5 billion in defamation lawsuits in Connecticut and Texas brought by the relatives of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims. The sale of Infowars is a part of that case. Jones consistently claimed that the 2012 shooting, which claimed the lives of 20 children and six teachers, was a planned hoax intended to increase gun regulation.
The Sandy Hook families will get the majority of the money raised from the sale of Infowars and many of Jones’ personal belongings in order to assist in fulfilling verdicts rendered by juries and judges in Connecticut and Texas state courts. Jones’ other creditors will receive a portion of the money.
First United American Companies, which operates a website selling nutritional supplements under Jones’ name, bid $3.5 million for Infowars’ assets during the auction, while The Onion, which aims to parody Infowars’ website and social media accounts, offered $1.75 million.
In order to provide other creditors a total of $100,000 more than they would receive under other bids, many Sandy Hook families also promised to sacrifice some or all of the auction proceeds that were due to them in the Onion’s bid.
Christopher Murray, the trustee, decided on The Onion because he believed that its plan would benefit creditors by giving them a larger payout.
Murray, The Onion, and the Sandy Hook family were accused by Jones and First United American Companies in court documents of unlawfully conspiring on the bidding, committing fraud, and breaking the auction judge’s guidelines.
The claims are denied by Murray, The Onion, and the families. Murray described the claims in his own court filing as “a disappointed bidder’s improper attempt to influence an otherwise fair and open auction process.”
All of the equipment and other assets at the Austin, Texas-based Infowars studio, along with its websites, social media accounts, video library, and product trademarks, were up for auction. Jones utilizes the studio to broadcast his conspiracy-theory-heavy, far-right broadcasts on radio stations, the Infowars website, and his social media account on X.
In the event that The Onion is approved to purchase Infowars and dismiss Jones, he has established a second studio, websites, and social media profiles. Jones has stated that if the auction winner is cordial with him, he may keep using the Infowars platforms.
Jones has admitted that the school massacre occurred, but he is contesting the $1.5 billion in rulings on the grounds of free speech.
A Connecticut appeals court maintained the remainder of the award on Friday, but lowered the initial $1.44 billion verdict against Jones in the lawsuit against him in that state by $150 million. Jones’ attorney stated that he would request that the highest court in Connecticut examine the appeal decision. In a related Texas defamation case, Jones is also contesting a $50 million ruling.
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