Satirical news site The Onion won a bankruptcy auction for the media empire of Alex Jones, giving it control of the conspiracy factory known as Infowars, along with some of its social media accounts, broadcasting equipment, customer lists, and inventory, which includes its long list of supplements.
“I would like to reiterate: We own everything,” wrote Onion CEO Ben Collins on the social media site Bluesky. “The broadcasting equipment, the supplements, the intellectual property for Brain Force Plus. We are still trying to figure out what to do with it.”
The site was put up for auction as part of more than $1 billion in legal settlements against Jones in lawsuits brought by the families of victims in the Sandy Hook Massacre. Jones spent a decade peddling outright lies and other defamatory nonsense in the wake of the massacre, attempting to paint the tragedy as a hoax.
"From day one, these families have fought against all odds to bring true accountability to Alex Jones and his corrupt business," Chris Mattei, attorney for the families and partner at Koskoff Koskoff & Bieder, said in a statement, according to CBS News. "Our clients knew that true accountability meant an end to Infowars and an end to Jones' ability to spread lies, pain and fear at scale. After surviving unimaginable loss with courage and integrity, they rejected Jones' hollow offers for allegedly more money if they would only let him stay on the air because doing so would have put other families in harm's way."
Jones and the Infowars brand have peddled utter horseshit for more than two decades, from 9/11 truth conspiracies to anti-vaccine nonsense along with hateful rhetoric and lies about pretty much every marginalized person it could find. The conspiracy juggernaut has long been a pipeline for radicalizing fascists while making millions hawking tubs of apocalypse chow, supplements, and other snake oil.
In a post on The Onion, fictional CEO of Global Tetrahedron Bryce P. Tetraeder writes:
“Founded in 1999 on the heels of the Satanic “panic” and growing steadily ever since, InfoWars has distinguished itself as an invaluable tool for brainwashing and controlling the masses. With a shrewd mix of delusional paranoia and dubious anti-aging nutrition hacks, they strive to make life both scarier and longer for everyone, a commendable goal. They are a true unicorn, capable of simultaneously inspiring public support for billionaires and stoking outrage at an inept federal state that can assassinate JFK but can’t even put a man on the Moon.”
In true Alex Jones fashion, he posted a video to X calling the purchase “tyranny.” “This morning the Connecticut democrats with The Onion newspaper bought us…I don’t know what’s gonna happen,” he said. “I’m gonna be here until they turn the lights off. I’m gonna say ‘where’s your court order…’ They want to silence the American people.”
Infowars was purchased for an undisclosed amount with the help of the Sandy Hook families. Collins said Onion and Clickhole staffers have been retained for whatever Infowars will become under its new ownership. “We're planning on making a very stupid website,” he posted on Bluesky.
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