Alex Jones is taking the fight over Infowars to court after The Onion purchased the conspiracy theorist’s company at auction. Jones held the auction to satisfy the verdict of a previous defamation lawsuit filed against him by several parents of children killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in 2012. Jones repeatedly claimed the tragedy was a hoax. Following the ruling, he filed for bankruptcy.
The parent company of Infowars, Free Speech Systems, was sold to the highest bidder – which just happened to be satirical publication The Onion. “…’ InfoWars’ has shown an unswerving commitment to manufacturing anger and radicalizing the most vulnerable members of society – values that resonate deeply with all of us at Global Tetrahedron,” The Onion wrote in a satirical piece by Bryce P. Tetraeder, the fake CEO of their phony corporation.
However, The Onion’s victory is now being contested by First United American Companies, an affiliate of Jones’ dietary supplement business. First United claims it offered $3.5 million in cash – twice as much as The Onion’s bid – to purchase the company.
Bankruptcy trustee Christopher Murray oversaw the auction and selected The Onion as the winner despite the company offering less than First United, using a clause in the bankruptcy ruling that allowed Murray to reject the highest bidder if it was “contrary to the best interests” of the estate creditors.
He defended his decision, as a majority of the Sandy Hook families were willing to give up their share of the sale proceeds in favor of future revenue generated by The Onion’s Infowars, which would result in an estimated $7 million in revenue for the creditors.
First United’s lawyer claims collusion between the Sandy Hook families and The Onion rigged the auction. The Onion counters that a joint bid is not “collusion” and that the sealed bidding process ensured transparency throughout the process.
The Onion plans to relaunch Infowars as “The Dumbest Website On The Internet.” In the meantime, Jones claimed President-elect Donald Trump and Elon Musk are investigating the auction. Musk filed a notice of appearance for the case. Jones’s lawyers have also requested a temporary restraining order against The Onion to disqualify their bid. A federal judge is now set to review the case.
