Alex Jones must sell the outlet to pay defamation damages to the families of the Sandy Hook massacre victims
A US federal judge in Texas has stopped the sale of Alex Jones’ InfoWars media outlet, citing flaws in the bidding process. The outspoken right-wing personality has been forced into bankruptcy and auctioning off InfoWars to pay $1.5 billion in defamation damages for publicly claiming that the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting was a hoax.
In 2022, a court in Connecticut ordered the alternative commentator to cough up the money to compensate for the emotional suffering caused to the families of the victims. During his broadcasts, Jones repeatedly alleged that the massacre had been staged by the US government to justify tightening gun control laws.
The InfoWars founder has since acknowledged that the tragedy, which claimed the lives of 20 children and six adults, was “100% real.”
In a ruling on Tuesday, US Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez left it up to the trustee who oversaw the auction to determine the next steps.
Last month, satirical news publication The Onion, which had planned to redesign InfoWars as a parody publication primarily targeting conspiracy theorists and right-wing personalities, was named the winning bidder. Backed by US pro-gun control non-profit, Everytown for Gun Safety, the Onion offered $1.75 million, while the only other bidder – First United American Companies, which is a nutritional supplement firm affiliated with Jones – bid $3.5 million.
Nevertheless, trustee Christopher Murray still insisted that the satirical magazine’s bid was a better deal. He argued that some of the Sandy Hook families had agreed to forgo $750,000 of the sale proceeds in order to pay Jones’ other creditors.
Amid complaints by Jones’ and First United American Companies’ lawyers, Judge Lopez voiced concerns about the transparency of the process at the time.
Commenting on the judge’s decision on Tuesday, Jones hailed Lopez for “doing the right thing with the most ridiculous, fraudulent auction known in human history.” The commentator had previously branded the sale of his outlet a “total attack on free speech.”
He also told his listeners that should his supporters prevail in the auction, he would be able to continue operating out of the InfoWars studio. However, Jones has already set up a backup studio, websites, and social media accounts in case The Onion wins.
Established in 1999, InfoWars enjoyed monthly traffic rates exceeding those of some mainstream media news sites by 2017. In his broadcasts, Jones would typically tear into Democrats, liberals, globalist politicians and NGOs, international financiers and other purported representatives of the ‘New World Order’.
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