Alex Jones Seeks to Block Infowars Sale to The Onion
Alex Jones plans to urge a U.S. bankruptcy judge on Monday to block the sale of his Infowars website to The Onion, a satirical news outlet, during a hearing in Houston. The Onion won the bankruptcy auction in November, but Jones and an affiliated company, First American United Companies, claim the sale process was marred by fraud and collusion.
Controversy Surrounding Infowars Auction
Jones declared bankruptcy in 2022 after courts in Connecticut and Texas ordered him to pay $1.4 billion to families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. The courts ruled Jones defamed the families by repeatedly claiming the tragedy was a hoax staged by the government to justify gun control.
First American United Companies, the runner-up in the auction, has argued that the Onion’s winning bid of $1.75 million was half its $3.5 million offer and alleged that the auction unfairly favored The Onion. The Onion secured support from Sandy Hook families based in Connecticut, who agreed to forego immediate repayment of their judgments in exchange for future revenue from the relaunched Infowars site, scheduled to debut in 2025 as a parody platform. A smaller group of Texas-based families opposed the deal, insisting on immediate repayment.
Legal and Financial Challenges
Jones has separately sued The Onion, the Sandy Hook families, and bankruptcy trustee Christopher Murray to block the sale. He argues that the Sandy Hook families’ legal judgments should not count as debts, claiming he could still win appeals in the defamation cases.
Meanwhile, Murray has defended the auction as fair, accusing First American United Companies of attempting to sway the process despite its weaker bid.
Adding to the complexity, Elon Musk’s social media platform, X, has raised a limited objection, asserting that Infowars’ social media accounts belong to X and cannot be part of the bankruptcy sale.
Judge to Decide on Sale’s Legitimacy
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez, who expressed concerns about the auction’s transparency during earlier hearings, will review evidence from all parties before deciding the sale’s fate. The ruling will determine whether The Onion can proceed with its plans to transform Infowars into a satire-focused platform with “noticeably less hateful disinformation.”
