Why Blocking The Onion From Buying Infowars Was ‘Right Decision’—Attorney

A bankruptcy judge made the “right decision” in blocking The Onion‘s purchase of Alex Jones’ Infowars site over concerns about the auction process, a legal expert has said.

Tre Lovell, a Los Angeles-based entertainment and media law attorney, reacted to Judge Christopher Lopez’s ruling that the satirical news outlet could not take over Infowars due to a lack of transparency in the silent bidding auction and of a competitive back-and-forth process.

The Onion was announced as the winner of the bankruptcy auction for Jones’ media empire in mid-November, despite not offering the highest bid. The Onion submitted $1.75 million in cash plus other incentives, while First United American Companies, affiliated with Jones’ online store selling nutritional supplements, offered $3.5 million, according to The Associated Press.

“This was the right decision, as the sale of Infowars must garner the best possible value to protect the interests of both the creditors and Alex Jones,” Lovell told Newsweek.

“Without an open bid, each side was prevented from increasing their offers and generating more money for the sale. In addition, by allowing credit from the victims, this doesn’t take into consideration any other creditors that may lose an opportunity to have their debts satisfied because the cash component is so low.”

Newsweek has reached out to Infowars and The Onion for comment outside of normal working hours.

Jones was forced to sell Infowars to help pay nearly $1.5 billion in defamation damages owed to the families of Sandy Hook victims. Jones falsely claimed on his Infowars show that the 2012 school shooting—which left 26 people dead, including 20 children—was a hoax and that the grieving parents were “crisis actors.”

Jones has since acknowledged that the massacre in Newtown, Connecticut, did occur but argued that the defamation lawsuits violated his right to free speech.

Christopher Murray, the court-appointed trustee to oversee the auction, said The Onion‘s bid was a better deal because some of the Sandy Hook families agreed to forgo part of the sale proceeds to pay Jones’ other creditors.

Lopez dismissed allegations of collusion or fraud in the auction but the trustee made a “good-faith error” in prematurely calling for final bids. Lopez said neither of the two bids for Infowars were sufficient given the scale of Jones’ debts, reported Reuters.

Lopez’s blocking of the sale means that Jones can continue to keep control of his Infowars site for the foreseeable future.

The judge said he does not want another auction to determine ownership of Infowars, with the decision possibly being handed over to Murray.

Lovell said that there should be another auction for Jones’ site that is open and transparent to ensure that “anyone interested in purchasing Infowars will have had an opportunity to match and/or raise other bids, and if not, the confidence that such an opportunity was allowed and exhausted.”

The Onion had said it would shut down Infowars and relaunch it in January as a satirical site parodying conspiracy theorists while promoting gun violence prevention.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Jones described the ruling blocking the sale on Infowars a “Major Victory for Freedom of the Press & Due Process.”

Chris Mattei, an attorney for the Connecticut families who sued Jones over his Sandy Hook remarks, said they are “disappointed” that the judge rejected The Onion’s purchase of Infowars.

“These families, who have already persevered through countless delays and roadblocks, remain as resilient and determined as ever to hold Alex Jones and his corrupt businesses accountable for the harm he has caused,” Mattei told Newsweek.

“This decision doesn’t change the fact that, soon, Alex Jones will begin to pay his debt to these families, and he will continue doing so for as long as it takes.”

Ben Collins, the chief executive of The Onion‘s parent company, Global Tetrahedron, said in a statement that the outlet will continue to seek a resolution to provide the Sandy Hook families with a “positive outcome for the horror they endured.”

The families have not received any money since Jones was ordered to pay the near $1.5 billion in damages across multiple lawsuits in 2022.