Federal bankruptcy judge Christopher M. Lopez rejected the Onion‘s bid to buy Infowars, the website of conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, citing that the auction of the website and the bid lacked transparency and created an uneven playing field.
The Onion, a Chicago-based satirical publication, won the auction for the website while backed by the families of the victims of the Sandy Hook shooting. For years, Jones claimed that the 2012 school shooting was fake and the victims’ families were just actors convincing the world of the tragedy.
The families sued Jones in 2018 for defamation. After Jones refused to participate in the trial, judges in Connecticut and Texas found him liable by default, and a jury awarded the families $1.4 billion in damages in 2022. Jones is still appealing the ruling and he has since declared bankruptcy and sold his company, Free Speech Systems, in order to pay some of what he owes the families.
The Onion‘s bid for the site was $7 million. After receiving $1.75 million from its parent company, Global Tetrahedron, the families of the victims pooled their defamation trial winnings together to support the Onion in the auction.
The Onion said it wants to turn Infowars into a site mocking the kind of conspiracy theories Jones promotes. The effort is put on hold for now as Lopez appointed a court-appointed trustee, Christopher Murray, in charge of establishing an alternate solution. It is unknown what approach Murray will take in deciding the case.
Ben Collins, the chief executive of Global Tetrahedron, said the publication was “deeply disappointed” by Tuesday’s decision.
He added that the Onion would “continue to seek a resolution that helps the Sandy Hook families receive a positive outcome for the horror they endured.” Collins also said the company would not stop its pursuit of Infowars.
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One of the attorneys for the Sandy Hook families, Chris Mattei, said that his clients were also disappointed in the ruling.
“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,” Mattei said.
