A bankruptcy judge is scheduled to hear arguments Monday about conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ efforts to block satirical media outlet The Onion from acquiring Infowars and turning it into a parody.
Jones claims fraud and collusion undermined a bankruptcy auction in which The Onion was the winning bidder on Nov. 14 against a company affiliated with him.
It’s unclear when U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Christopher Lopez in Houston will rule. He can allow The Onion to proceed with the purchase, order a new auction, or name another bidder as the winner. The question is whether Jones will stay at Infowars’ studio in Austin, Texas, under new owners who are friendly to him, or whether he will be forced out by The Onion.
Another bidder, First United American Companies, operates a website selling nutritional supplements under Jones’ name.
Despite this, Jones created a new studio, website, and social media accounts to continue broadcasting his show. And while his personal account, which has 3.3 million followers on the social platform
Jones’ bankruptcy and liquidation of his assets came after he was ordered to pay about $1.5 billion to relatives of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. Jones is liable for defamation and emotional distress damages in lawsuits filed in Connecticut and Texas for repeatedly claiming that the 2012 shooting that killed 20 first-graders and six educators was a hoax staged by actors to promote stricter gun laws. It turns out that it is.
The liquidation proceeds will go to Jones’ creditors, including the Sandy Hook family who sued him.
Jones claims The Onion’s bid was the result of fraud and collusion involving many of the family members, the humor site and a court-appointed trustee who oversaw the liquidation.
First United American Companies submitted a $3.5 million private bid and The Onion offered $1.75 million cash. But The Onion’s bid also included a pledge to give up some or all of the auction proceeds to give other creditors a total of $100,000 more than the Sandy Hook family would have received from other bids.
Trustee Christopher Murray said this made The Onion’s offer more palatable to creditors and named it the winning bidder. He denied any wrongdoing.
Jones and First United American Companies argued that the bids violated Lopez’s auction rules by involving multiple entities and lacking valid dollar amounts. Jones also alleged that Murray improperly canceled an expected live bidding round and only selected from the sealed bids that were submitted.
Jones called the auction a “rig” and a “scam” on his show, which airs on the Infowars website, radio stations and through Jones’ X account. He filed a counterclaim in bankruptcy court last week against The Onion’s parent company, Murray and the Sandy Hook family.
In a court filing Sunday, Murray called the claims a “desperate attempt” to delay Infowars’ sale to The Onion and called it a “malicious smear campaign making patently false accusations” by Jones and attorneys for First United American Companies. “He criticized. He also claimed that Jones worked with First United American Companies to attempt to acquire Infowars.
Lopez’s September order on auction procedures made live bidding rounds optional. And it gave Murray broad authority to carry out the sale. This includes the power to reject any bid, no matter how high, that is “contrary to the best interests” of Jones, his company and its creditors.
But at the Nov. 14 hearing, Lopez said she was concerned about process and transparency.
“We are all going to attend the evidentiary hearing and find out exactly what happened,” he said. “No one should feel comfortable with the outcome of this auction.”
The assets of Infowars’ parent company, Free Speech Systems, up for sale included the Austin studio, Infowars’ video archives, video production equipment, product trademarks, and Infowars’ website and social media accounts.
Jones appealed the $1.5 billion verdict on free speech grounds, but acknowledged the school shooting occurred.
According to court documents, Jones earned millions of dollars a year selling nutritional supplements, clothing, survival gear and other merchandise, including more than $22 million through his Infowars Store website through September 30 of this year.
Many of Jones’ personal assets, including real estate, firearms and other personal belongings, are also being sold as part of the bankruptcy.
Jones has personal assets of about $9 million, while Free Speech Systems has about $6 million in cash and more than $1 million in inventory, according to documents filed in court this year.
