A Bankruptcy Judge Rejects Bid by The Onion’s Parent Company to Buy Alex Jones’ Far-Right Media Empire
A bankruptcy court judge has rejected a bid by The Onion’s parent company, Global Tetrahedron, to buy the assets of far-right media personality Alex Jones’ company, Infowars. The decision came after a two-day hearing, with the judge ruling that The Onion’s bid was not the best offer and that the auction process was unfair.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez said that while The Onion’s parent company had not submitted the best bid, he would leave the decision about what to do next in the hands of the trustee, Christopher Murray. The judge also stated that the auction process fell short of maximizing the payout to unsecured creditors, including the families of the victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting, who are owed $1.2 billion in damages.
The rejection of the bid dashes plans for The Onion to take over Infowars and shift its content from anti-government conspiracy theories to satirical humor. Jones, who has been a vocal critic of The Onion, celebrated the decision, while The Onion’s CEO, Ben Collins, expressed disappointment and said the company would continue to seek a path to purchase Infowars.
The auction process was marked by controversy, with rival bidder First United American Cos., associated with Jones, offering a higher cash bid of $3.5 million. The judge also expressed frustration with the auction process, stating that it was not transparent and that a different process could have earned more money for creditors.
The outcome leaves Jones in control of his far-right media empire, which includes Infowars.com, production equipment, and inventory from his nutritional supplements business. The families of the Sandy Hook victims, who successfully sued Jones for defamation, are expected to continue pursuing judgments valued at $1.2 billion.