The bid represents another attempt to repurpose Infowars’ intellectual property toward paying civil liabilities incurred from Jones’ repeated on-air claims that the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting was staged by ‘crisis actors.’
In mid-April, the satirical news outlet The Onion submitted a proposal to a Texas state court seeking an exclusive temporary license to operate the conspiracy-focused platforms of Alex Jones as a parody site. The proposal comes as Jones’ company, Free Speech Systems, faces liquidation to satisfy more than $1 billion in defamation judgments owed to relatives of Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims.
Under the plan, The Onion would pay $81,000 monthly to cover the rent, utilities, and other operating costs for Infowars’ studios in Austin, according to a court-submitted proposal. The licensing deal would run for six months, renewable for another six months as a court-appointed receiver works to liquidate assets and direct proceeds to Sandy Hook families.
Ben Collins, CEO of The Onion, said in an interview that the deal could be approved and in place around April 30 if granted by Judge Maya Guerra Gamble, who oversees the case in Austin state court. The Onion has already hired Tim Heidecker, one half of the comedy duo Tim and Eric, to oversee the conversion of Infowars into a parody platform.
“We’ll build this into a bigger comedy network,” Collins said, adding that the Sandy Hook families would receive profits from the new operations.
Collins described the outlet’s vision for the parody site. “A big part of it for us is that the way people consume news now is they see somebody who has no idea what the [expletive] they’re talking about staring into their camera and just like coming up with conspiracy theories or telling you health hacks that will actually get you poisoned, things like that,” he said. “We’re going to create a bunch of characters and worlds around those kinds of things.”
Jones Vows to Continue Broadcasting
On his show, Jones vowed to fight the licensing proposal in court but acknowledged he and his crew could be asked to leave the building by month’s end. He said he would continue his broadcasts from another studio using his personal X account, other social media accounts, and dozens of radio stations. He has also established new websites for the merchandise he sells, including dietary supplements and clothing that generate millions of dollars annually.
“I’m going to continue the exact same show,” Jones said. “It’ll just be called the ‘Alex Jones Show.’ So, it’s the same satellite, same system. It’s a different news site and news studio. So I’m not going anywhere.”
Years of Defamation Litigation
The Onion’s proposal comes after more than a decade of legal battles stemming from Jones’ claims that the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut was staged by “crisis actors.” The shooting killed 20 first graders and six educators.
Relatives of the victims and an FBI agent who responded to the shooting sued Jones for defamation and infliction of emotional distress. During a 2022 trial in Connecticut, victims’ relatives testified that people following Jones subjected them to death and rape threats, in-person harassment, and abusive social media comments. Jones argued there was never any proof linking him to the actions of his audience members.
A jury and judge awarded the families and the FBI agent more than $1.4 billion in damages. In a similar lawsuit in Texas, the parents of a Sandy Hook child were awarded nearly $50 million. Jones appealed both awards. He lost his challenge to the Connecticut judgment; his appeal of the Texas award remains pending.
The Bankruptcy Liquidation
Jones filed for bankruptcy in late 2022. An auction was held in November 2024 to liquidate Infowars’ assets, and The Onion was named the winning bidder. However, the bankruptcy judge threw out the auction results, citing problems with the process and The Onion’s bid.
The case moved to Texas state court, where Judge Guerra Gamble appointed a receiver to liquidate the assets of Jones’ company. The receiver is supporting The Onion’s licensing proposal. A lawyer for the Sandy Hook families who sued Jones in Connecticut said they support the plan.