Infowars, the far-right conspiracy theory network that profited from spreading lies, died on Friday after losing its battle against the truth. It was 27 years old.
Background of the Shutdown
The death comes nearly four years after Alex Jones, founder of Infowars, was court-ordered to pay roughly $1 billion to several families whose loved ones were killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. Jones had falsely claimed that the victims were "crisis actors" and that the shooting, which left 20 children and six adults dead, was "staged."
A judge ruled last year that Infowars could be sold to help pay the families. The sale includes studio equipment such as cameras, desks, and microphones, along with the Infowars brand name. While satirical news outlet The Onion continues to wrestle for control of the Infowars brand, the website itself was taken down at midnight on Friday after a court-appointed receiver stopped paying rent and utilities for the studio space.
Jones's Response
At the time of last year's ruling, Jones remained defiant and said the two jury trials he lost were "rigged."
"Here's just a little reminder, though: They don't want money in their fake, rigged, Sandy Hook trials run by Democrats," Jones said on an Infowars broadcast. "No, they want me off the air."
Impact on Sandy Hook Families
Among the 20 children killed at Sandy Hook was 6-year-old Jesse Lewis, described by his father, Neil Heslin, as an energetic child who loved animals and helping others. On the day of the shooting, Jesse led his classmates to safety and likely saved lives. Heslin testified in a Texas courtroom in 2022 about the abuse his family endured at the direction of Jones and Infowars. Heslin said he did not want Jones's money, but hitting Jones's wallet might be the only way to stop him from spreading lies.
"I believe it's the only way to put a stop to it, to prevent this from happening anymore," Heslin said on the stand. "There's got to be a strong deterrent to put a stop to what is being said."
As Heslin testified, Jones was in his Infowars studio, broadcasting and whining about the supposed injustices of the trial while attacking Heslin as "slow" and "on the spectrum."
History of Infowars
After being fired in 1999 from his evening radio show on Texas's KJFK for reportedly souring advertisers with his rants, Jones founded Infowars. The platform became ground zero for the spread of increasingly unhinged and toxic conspiracy theories. Over the years, Jones used his platform to promote anti-government conspiracy theories, rant about a "satanic pedophile, globalist New World Order," and harass survivors of tragedies. Racism, antisemitism, Islamophobia, and homophobia permeated Infowars broadcasts, and the audience consumed it eagerly. Infowars made hundreds of millions of dollars selling supplements and survival gear during its nearly three decades in business.
In 2015, Jones hosted then-presidential candidate Donald Trump on Infowars, a dark foreshadowing of the years of disinformation to follow. "Your reputation is amazing," Trump told Jones. "I will not let you down."
Other Victims of Jones's Lies
The massive profits generated by Infowars came at the cost of innocent people. Brennan Gilmore recorded the moment a neo-Nazi drove a car into a crowd of protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017, killing Heather Heyer. Jones dismissed the violence, labeling Gilmore a "deep state shill" and "CIA asset." Gilmore sued Jones for defamation, alleging death threats and physical assaults. Jones admitted liability in 2022 and paid $50,000.
Marcel Fontaine, a Boston resident, was falsely accused in an Infowars article of being the Parkland school shooter in 2018. A longtime Infowars employee cried during a deposition, expressing regret for misidentifying Fontaine based on a 4chan post. The lawsuit stalled amid Jones's bankruptcy, and Fontaine died in a house fire last year.
Legal Consequences
HuffPost was the first to report in 2018 on lawsuits against Jones and Infowars brought by parents of children killed in Sandy Hook. Mark Bankston of the Texas law firm Farrar & Ball represented the parents in the initial lawsuit. Among the falsehoods on the Infowars website was a headline: "FBI SAYS NO ONE KILLED AT SANDY HOOK." During a 2016 broadcast, Jones said, "If children were lost at Sandy Hook, my heart goes out to each and every one of those parents. But the only problem is, I've watched a lot of soap operas, and I've seen actors before."
A former Infowars employee said in a video deposition that he was laughed at after repeatedly warning staff to stop publishing falsehoods. Bankston reminded jurors of the distinction between free speech and lies: "Speech is free. But lies you have to pay for."
Desecration of a Child's Grave
Jones's second trial took place in Connecticut, just 20 minutes from Sandy Hook. Families broke down in tears as they described the deaths of their loved ones and the additional nightmare Jones unleashed. Robbie Parker, whose 6-year-old daughter Emilie was killed, said threats poured in after Jones called him a "crisis actor." Mark and Jackie Barden, whose 7-year-old son Daniel was killed, received a letter from someone who claimed to have urinated on the child's grave. Another letter threatened to dig up the grave to prove the child didn't exist. Parents Ian and Nicole Hockley, whose 6-year-old son Dylan was killed, testified about receiving pictures of dead children from harassers.
The abuse continued during the trial. One morning, as Sandy Hook families walked into the Connecticut courthouse, they passed Infowars stickers plastered on a nearby traffic sign and a trash can.
No Remorse
Jones used one of his final days on Infowars to target the Sandy Hook families. In an April 22 broadcast, he said, "All a big setup. Because they killed those kids with professional shooters, and that's what they don't want coming out. It's in the police reports. There was a pile of kids in the bathroom in a pyramid with no blood."
Jones continued to hawk supplements and merchandise while making himself out to be a martyr. He promised that The Onion would be "in deep shit" for trying to take his platform. "Just because you're wearing my shirt, don't mean you're me," a shirtless Jones said during an April 20 broadcast.
Future of Alex Jones
Jones may have lost Infowars, but he is unlikely to disappear. He still has platforms on X and Rumble, and he has a new website where he is already selling products and asking for donations. While he has previously vowed to make an even bigger studio and broadcast "20 hours a day," Jones may have to recruit new talent. Owen Shroyer, an Infowars staple who spent 60 days in prison for his role in the January 6 Capitol attack, left the network in September over tensions with Jones. Jones was blindsided by the departure, calling Shroyer a "snake," "rat," "fraud," and "backstabber."
More recently, Jones and Trump ended their yearslong friendship after Jones criticized the Iran war that Trump started in February. In a Truth Social post, Trump targeted Jones and other right-wing voices, giving a fitting eulogy for Infowars: "Or Bankrupt Alex Jones, who says some of the dumbest things, and lost his entire fortune, as he should have, for his horrendous attack on the families of the Sandy Hook shooting victims, ridiculously claiming it was a hoax. These so-called 'pundits' are LOSERS, and they always will be!"
