The Onion's bid to take over Alex Jones' Infowars is in limbo as new
court battles emerge
[May 01, 2026]
By JIM VERTUNO and DAVE COLLINS
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The Onion’s plan to take over the Infowars
platforms that Alex Jones built into a bullhorn of conspiracy theories
and turn them into parody sites was in limbo again Thursday, after a
Texas court paused a proposed deal involving the satirical news outlet.
Austin-based Infowars is facing liquidation because of the more than $1
billion in defamation lawsuit judgments Jones owes relatives of victims
of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting for calling the
Connecticut massacre a hoax. The proposed licensing deal would give The
Onion temporary authority to use Infowars' trademarks, copyrights and
intellectual property while a state receiver in Texas works toward
liquidation.
A state judge in Austin had scheduled a hearing Thursday on whether to
approve The Onion deal with the receiver. But the proceeding fizzled
into a status conference because the Texas Third Court of Appeals late
Wednesday approved an emergency motion by Jones’ lawyers that
temporarily blocked the transfer of any Infowars assets. The judge set
another hearing for May 28.
Lawyers for the Sandy Hook families had asked the Texas Supreme Court to
overturn the appeals court ruling, but the high court did not issue a
decision before Thursday's hearing.
“This newly insane, unprecedented legal stalling does nothing but delay
our deal with the receiver to take control of InfoWars,” Ben Collins,
The Onion's CEO, said in a social media post ahead of the hearing. “We
now expect new traps in Alex Jones’ amoral war to deny paying the Sandy
Hook families, but we’re freshly surprised by the U.S. legal system’s
appetite to put up with it.”
The Onion already has been selling Infowars merchandise on its own
website, including T-shirts and tote bags with an Infowars logo that
replaces the “o” with its trademark onion image. It wants to turn the
Infowars platforms into comedy sites that would include spoofing Jones,
conspiracy theories and right-wing talking points, while giving revenue
to the Sandy Hook victims’ relatives.
Jones declared victory in videos posted on his social media sites after
the appellate court ruling. He called The Onion's plan illegal, citing
pending appeals and his continuing personal bankruptcy case.
“I said days ago there’s no way the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in
Texas doesn’t overturn this — you know they’re all Democrats — because
it’s so outrageous what you’ve done,” Jones said.
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Right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones speaks to the media after
arriving at the federal courthouse for a hearing in front of a
bankruptcy judge, June 14, 2024, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J.
Phillip, File)
 After Thursday’s hearing, Mark
Bankston, a lawyer for some of the Sandy Hook victims’ relatives,
accused Jones of delaying the liquidation of Infowars numerous times
with court filings.
“As far as the world is concerned, Infowars is dead. Everybody knows
that,” he said. “He’s trying to keep the bloated corpse of a media
organization alive. It’s all a joke. Everybody knows where this is
going.”
It’s not the first time The Onion has hit a legal setback in plans
to take over Infowars.
In November 2024, the Chicago-based satirical outlet was named the
winner of a bankruptcy court auction of the assets of Infowars’
parent company, Free Speech Systems, aimed at helping pay some of
the defamation judgments. But a federal judge overturned the auction
results, citing problems with process and The Onion’s bid.
Jones said on his show this week that he has a new studio nearing
completion. He already has set up a new phone app and websites,
including one that sells the dietary supplements, clothing and other
merchandise he hawks on his shows. And his personal X account, where
he posts videos of his shows and has 4.5 million followers, is not
affected by any of the court cases.
On Thursday night, Jones toasted to his crew and viewers during a
livestream on X as a clock ticked down to when he said his final
moments in the building would hit.
“We’re not here anymore because they’re turning the power off at
midnight,” he said.
___
Collins reported from Hartford, Connecticut. Associated Press
reporter Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed to this report.
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