The Onion Takes Over Alex Jones’ Infowars Site

The Onion Buys Infowars, Plans Satire and Debt Payment

The satirical news site The Onion has announced it will officially take over the controversial Infowars platform. This move follows a lengthy legal battle and auction process. The Onion plans to use the platform for parody and to help pay off debts owed to Sandy Hook families.

Alex Jones’ History of Conspiracy Theories

Infowars, hosted by Alex Jones, has long been known for spreading extreme conspiracy theories. For years, Jones promoted baseless claims about the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in 2012. He falsely stated the event was a hoax and that the child victims were not killed.

This harmful misinformation led to years of harassment and threats against the grieving Sandy Hook families. Many of Jones’s supporters targeted the families online. The cruelty and impact of these lies have been widely condemned.

Legal Battles and Financial Consequences

In 2018, several Sandy Hook families sued Alex Jones for defamation. Juries found him liable for the harm caused by his false statements. The courts awarded the families approximately $1.5 billion in damages.

However, Alex Jones declared bankruptcy after the verdicts. This prevented the families from collecting the money owed. A bankruptcy judge ordered the sale of Infowars’ assets, including its brand and intellectual property, to help satisfy the debt.

The Onion’s Initial Bid and Legal Delays

About a year and a half ago, The Onion surprisingly won an auction for Infowars’ assets. The plan was to turn Infowars into a parody of itself. This would stop the platform from causing further harm and begin to mend some of the damage done.

But Alex Jones challenged the auction results. The process became tied up in court for months. This delay prevented The Onion from taking full control of the Infowars brand and operations.

Breakthrough and New Ownership

A significant breakthrough occurred recently. The Onion announced they have reached an agreement to acquire Infowars, pending final court approval. The Infowars logo has already been updated on The Onion’s website, with the ‘O’ in Infowars replaced by The Onion’s logo.

Ben Collins, CEO of The Onion, confirmed the development. He stated that the new Infowars page will feature similar scammy ads to the original site. These include products like a ‘Demon Guard’ patch for protection and ‘pure O oxygen capsules.’ There’s also an offer to ‘learn to float’ and discover secrets.

Plans for Infowars and Restitution

Collins explained that the proceeds from the new Onion-run Infowars will help pay down Alex Jones’s substantial debts. A portion of the revenue will go towards compensating the Sandy Hook families. This marks a significant step toward financial justice for the victims’ families.

The Onion intends to use the Infowars platform for professional satire. Collins mentioned that people increasingly get information from sources that make outlandish claims, but these claims are often untrue. He believes no one has effectively made fun of these figures professionally until now.

The Onion plans to feature caricatures and grotesque representations of those who have negatively impacted the media landscape. They aim to address the harmful content that has dominated online spaces.

Future of Infowars Content

While the exact inventory of the Infowars studio in Austin, Texas, is still being determined, it includes the brand itself. Collins humorously mentioned a rowing machine might be among the assets. The focus, however, remains on taking over the Infowars name and its associated platform.

Regarding the infamous supplements, Collins hinted at selling ‘supplement-adjacent stuff.’ He joked about offering water that cures everything and omega-3 fish oil from ‘exclusively conservative fish.’ This playful approach highlights the Onion’s satirical intent.

The Onion’s takeover of Infowars represents a unique intersection of satire, accountability, and financial restitution. The final court approval is expected soon, enabling a new era of the Infowars platform under comedic control.

Source: Alex Jones' Infowars to become a joke on purpose as accountability finally catches up  (YouTube)