In a surprising turn of events, the proposed acquisition of Alex Jones's controversial Infowars website by the satirical news platform The Onion has been denied by a U.S. bankruptcy judge. After two days of hearings, Judge Christopher Lopez ruled that the auction for Infowars fell short of yielding the best possible bids. Interestingly, the judge dismissed Jones's claims of "collusion" throughout the auction process.
The auction was notably backed by families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims, who had previously won a significant $1.5 billion defamation lawsuit against Jones for disseminating false narratives about the tragedy. Judge Lopez critiqued the actions of the court-appointed bankruptcy trustee, highlighting that a "good-faith error" led to a premature termination of the bidding process.
Instead of allowing for additional bids, Judge Lopez asserted that the auction should have opened up again, allowing both The Onion and a company tied to Jones's supplement ventures to engage in further competition. "This should have been opened back up, and it should have been opened back up for everybody," he conveyed.
In reaction to the ruling, Jones referred to the auction's proceedings as "ridiculous" and "fraudulent." On the opposite end, Ben Collins, chief executive of Global Tetrahedron—the parent company of The Onion—expressed dismay at the judge’s decision, emphasizing that they would persist in their pursuit to acquire Infowars.
Jones, who began his media career as a fringe broadcaster in Austin, Texas, garnered notoriety for his mix of opinion, speculation, and outright fabrications, often leading to severe financial and legal repercussions. A significant portion of his financial struggles can be traced back to his statements following the horrific Sandy Hook shooting in December 2012, which claimed the lives of twenty children and six school staff members.
Jones notoriously propagated conspiracy theories surrounding the incident, suggesting that the massacre was staged and victims were merely actors. These claims led to harassment directed at the families of the victims, prompting several arrests for intimidation and stalking behavior.
Although Jones later recanted his previous assertions regarding the legitimacy of the Sandy Hook tragedy, the damage was done, resulting in substantial defamation judgments against him. In a significant twist, Jones declared bankruptcy in 2022, and a judge has since ordered the liquidation of his assets, including a multimillion-dollar estate and substantial personal belongings, which have been appraised at around $8.6 million, as detailed in court filings.
