Federal judge rejects sale of Alex Jones' Infowars to The Onion
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
InfoWars founder Alex Jones in Waterbury, Connecticut, in September. Photo: Joe Buglewicz/Getty Images
A federal bankruptcy judge rejected The Onion's winning bid to buy Alex Jones' Infowars platform in a Tuesday night ruling.
The big picture: Judge Christopher Lopez, of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, cited problems with transparency during the sealed bidding of the sale at November's court-ordered auction, per Bloomberg and other outlets.
- Ben Collins, CEO of Global Tetrahedron, The Onion's parent company, said in a statement posted to social media they will "continue to seek a path towards purchasing Infowars in the coming weeks."
Context: Far-right conspiracy theorist Jones was forced to sell Infowars to help repay the $1.5 billion in damages he owes to the families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims for falsely claiming the massacre in Connecticut was a hoax.
- Christopher Murray, the court-appointed trustee who is liquidating Jones' estate in the bankruptcy proceedings, valued The Onion's total bid at over $7 million, including $1.75 million in cash that the satirical news site offered, according to multiple reports.
- The total takes into account Sandy Hook families' offer to forgo their portion of potential earnings from the defamation judgment to support The Onion's bid.
Driving the news: Jones and First United American Companies, a bidder affiliated with the Infowars co-founder, who offered $3.5 million in cash for the platform, argued against the sale to The Onion during a two-day hearing this week.
- Lopez said in his ruling from the bench in Houston that he didn't think "anyone acted in bad faith," the Washington Post reports.
- "I think everyone was trying to buy an asset and put their best foot forward and play by the rules," he added.
- However, Lopez didn't think the winning bid was "enough money" and so he said he would not approve the sale, according to NBC News.
What they're saying: Christopher Mattei, an attorney for the Sandy Hook families who sued Jones in Connecticut, said in a statement emailed early Wednesday they were "disappointed the Bankruptcy Court rejected a purchase of Infowars that the court-appointed trustee recommended as being in the best interest of the creditors."
- He added: "These families, who have already persevered through countless delays and roadblocks, remain resilient and determined as ever to hold Alex Jones and his corrupt businesses accountable for the harm he has caused.
- "This decision doesn't change the fact that, soon, Alex Jones will begin to pay his debt to these families and he will continue doing so for as long as it takes."
Collins said in his statement The Onion "will continue to seek a resolution that helps the Sandy Hook families receive a positive outcome for the horror they endured."
- He said pursuing the purchase of Infowars "is part of our larger mission to make a better, funnier internet, regardless of the outcome."
The other side: "It's like being held underwater and finally getting air," Jones said in response to the ruling during a live broadcast, per Bloomberg.
State of play: "Lopez said he does not want another complex auction, but deferred to Murray on how to proceed with fetching top dollar for Jones' assets," WaPo reports.
- The Onion planned to relaunch a new version of Infowars with Everytown for Gun Safety, a nonprofit that fights gun violence, as its sponsor, per Axios' Tim Baysinger.
Go deeper: Musk's X claims ownership of InfoWars accounts in sale to The Onion
Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.
