“`html
Infowars Auction Update: The Onion’s Bid and Future Plans
Following a judge’s decision on Thursday to hold an evidentiary hearing regarding The Onion‘s successful bid for Infowars, Alex Jones’ controversial platform has resumed its operations, claiming that the sale has been halted. However, The Onion‘s CEO, Ben Collins, provided a different perspective in an update shared on Bluesky and X this past Saturday. He stated, “We left the hearing with clear next steps to finalize the sale.” According to Collins, a court date is scheduled for next Monday when they anticipate completing the transaction. In the interim, Infowars has requested permission to continue its publishing activities. “In summary: We won the auction — and believe it or not — those previously associated with InfoWars are not handling it well,” Collins remarked.
“On Thursday, we were informed by the auction overseer that our bid for InfoWars, alongside support from families affected by Sandy Hook in Connecticut, was victorious,” Collins elaborated in his post thread. “We have yet to receive any updates that would alter this outcome—except from those currently managing InfoWars who are continuing their usual antics.” Unsurprisingly, Jones labeled the auction as “rigged,” asserting during a livestream on X that legal representatives from Elon Musk’s social media platform had intervened and attended the hearing as reported by Mother Jones.
The Bidding Landscape of Infowars
The Onion faced only one other competitor during its bidding process for Infowars: First United American Companies—a firm linked to a website selling supplements endorsed by Jones himself. This company reportedly placed a bid of $3.5 million. While details about Global Tetrahedron’s (the parent company of The Onion ) offer remain undisclosed, it is noteworthy that their proposal received backing from families of Sandy Hook victims. As highlighted by trustee Christopher Murray—who is overseeing Jones’ estate liquidation—these families have agreed to relinquish their potential recovery rights in favor of all other unsecured creditors owed money by Jones according to reports from Bloomberg.
A Glimpse into Future Operations at Infowars
“A status conference took place with the judge supervising our auction shortly after we were declared winners,” Collins noted in his Saturday update; he previously reported on disinformation and online extremism for NBC News. “The judge raised some inquiries regarding procedural matters and certain assets involved in this case which we appreciate since our bid—with family support—is evidently superior; transparency is crucial.” He further commented: “We anticipated these developments; acquiring this site was always going to be entertaining down the line but somewhat frustrating initially—the enjoyable aspects are still ahead.”
A New Direction:
Collins envisions relaunching < em >Infowars< / em > as “the most absurd website on the internet.” Notably, nonprofit organization Everytown for Gun Safety will reportedly serve as its exclusive advertiser upon launch.
“`
