Infowars Faces Final Blow as The Onion Takes Over Site in Bankruptcy Deal

“I thought we’d be shut down last year,” Alex Jones marveled on-air in January. “I thought we’d be shut down last month,” he continued, urging his audience to purchase fundraiser items to keep Infowars operational. Among the offerings were a $111 collectible coin and posters featuring Jones and Donald Trump. “You guys have got us out of this over, and over, and over again,” Jones declared, once again appealing for financial support from his followers.

Jones repeated the claim in March, this time telling right-wing streamer Tim Pool that Infowars was “getting shut down.” Slurring his words, he added, “We’ve beaten so many attacks. But now we’re shutting down in the middle of next month.” Despite years in bankruptcy, Jones continued to generate chaos and solicit funds.

Jones never clarified what “shutting down” Infowars in April would entail. However, on Monday, a resolution emerged when satirical news site The Onion announced it had reached a deal with the bankruptcy receiver overseeing Infowars to take over the site. Pending judicial approval, the agreement would allow The Onion’s parent company, Global Tetrahedron, to assume control of Infowars’ website and studio for six to twelve months. The site would then be transformed into a parody of itself.

In a mockup shared by Onion CEO Ben Collins, parody ads replaced Infowars’ typical content, including slogans like “TURN YOUR PISS INTO GOLD” and “TURN YOUR GOLD INTO PISS.”

The Rise and Fall of Infowars

For decades, Infowars, founded by Jones in 1999, grew into a sprawling conspiracy empire, amassing significant wealth, reach, and notoriety. Jones became a polarizing figure, known for claims such as black helicopters, FEMA camps, and chemicals “turning the frogs gay.” His rhetoric often centered on fringe theories that gained traction among his audience.

However, Jones’ infamy ultimately led to legal consequences. He was sued in Texas and Connecticut for asserting on-air that the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre—a shooting that killed 20 children and six adults—was a “massive hoax” and a false flag operation. In 2019, Jones lost three related defamation lawsuits by default, resulting in over $1 billion in judgments against him and Infowars.

To many observers, the court losses signaled the imminent collapse of Infowars. Yet Jones and his company defied expectations, leveraging the judicial system to prolong their operations. In 2022, both Infowars and Jones filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection in Texas, initiating a protracted legal battle. To date, the Sandy Hook families have not received any of the awarded compensation.

The bankruptcy proceedings have dragged on, with Jones repeatedly claiming imminent shutdowns while continuing to solicit funds. The latest deal with The Onion could represent a definitive end to Jones’ control over Infowars, pending court approval.