Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones Infowars broadcasts may end next week as the company faces a court-ordered auction of its assets. 1 billion dollar defamation verdict He owes money to the families of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

Or maybe not.

Both opponents and supporters of the flamboyant web show and radio host have expressed interest in bidding for the Infowars properties he has built over the past 25 years. These include: Roger StoneProgressive media groups that are allies of Jones and Donald Trump and are anti-Jones. Jones could stay with Infowars if backers buy the assets.

Everything from Jones’ studio desk to Infowars’ name, video archives, social media accounts and product brands are for sale. Buyers can even purchase an armored truck and video cameras. Jones’ personal social media accounts, including the

Auctions Jones’ personal bankruptcy caseIt was filed in late 2022 after Sandy Hook families were awarded nearly $1.5 billion in damages in lawsuits filed in Connecticut and Texas. Claims school attack was a hoax. Many of Jones’ personal assets are also being liquidated to help pay the judgment.

The deadline for submitting offers and confidentiality agreements for Infowars assets is Friday afternoon. Once bids are reviewed, potential buyers deemed qualified will be invited to a live auction next Wednesday that will see multiple rounds of bidding. Unsold items will be offered for sale in another auction on December 10.

Jones expressed confidence that backers, whose names he did not provide, will continue to use their platforms by purchasing the assets of Infowars and its parent company, Free Speech Systems. It seems that he is preparing to lose the brand as he establishes new websites and social media accounts and directs his target audience to them.

“There are a lot of buyers and patriotic people who want this and will come,” Jones said on his show in August. “If not… we’ll work with someone else, fire something up. And there will be some trouble for the crew. But this will make us bigger.”

Email messages to Infowars and Jones’ bankruptcy attorney were not returned.

It’s unclear how much money the auctions will bring in. In court documents, Free Speech Systems listed the total value of its properties and assets at $18 million. Proceeds from the sales will go to creditors, including the Sandy Hook families who have not yet received money from Jones and his company.

Confidentiality agreements and sealed bids are often used in auctions to maximize bid amounts and prevent bidders from talking to each other and driving bids down. The trustee in Jones’ bankruptcy case said in court documents that procedures for the Infowars auction were designed to attract the highest possible bids.

Christopher Mattei, the Connecticut attorney representing the Sandy Hook families, called the auctions a major turning point in their years-long fight to hold Jones accountable. He also said the families will seek a portion of all of Jones’ future income.

“From the beginning, Connecticut families have sought to hold Jones fully accountable for his lies and to protect other families from him,” Mattei said. “Removing Jones from the corrupt business he used to attack families and poison the minds of his listeners is an important measure of justice.”

The families sued Jones and his company for defamation and emotional distress after he repeatedly said on his show that the 2012 shooting that killed 20 first-graders and six educators in Newtown, Connecticut, was a hoax staged by crisis actors to encourage greater gun control .

The parents and children of many of the victims testified that they were traumatized by Jones’ false conspiracies. He is threatened by his followers.

Jones, who has since admitted the shooting took place, is appealing the verdicts.

Jones has earned millions of dollars from his Internet and radio shows, primarily through the sale of nutritional supplements, survival gear, clothing and other products.

Stone, an ally of Jones and Trump and a conservative commentator, said on the X account and on Jones’ show that he wanted to bring together a group of investors to buy Infowars. He did not respond to email and social media messages Thursday.

“I understand the importance of Infowars as a sign of truth, as a sign of accurate information. So I want to do whatever I can to make sure Infowars survives,” Stone said on Jones’ show in September.

People on social media also called for billionaire Elon Musk, owner of Tesla and X, to buy Infowars; Jones supported the idea, but Musk did not respond publicly.

On the other hand, Jones’ critics have expressed interest in buying Infowars, firing Jones, and turning it into a news site debunking conspiracy theories or even a parody site. These include officials from The Barbed Wire and Media Matters for America, two progressive media sites.

The headline of an opinion piece by publisher Jeff Rotkoff in The Barbed Wire in September read: “Let’s Buy Infowars. Alex Jones used these exact materials to exploit his viewers, peddle conspiracy theories, and wreak havoc on the lives of grieving parents. We demand revenge.” .

Rotkoff urged readers to donate money to help them bid, but said Thursday that The Barbed Wire, based in Jones’ home state of Texas, is now unlikely to make any bids.

“But we have spoken with bidders along similar ideological lines and are confident our bid will be higher,” Rotkoff said in an email. “We are excited that so many well-resourced bidders have emerged who share our interest in undoing much of the damage Alex Jones has done to our country. “We will root for these people to succeed.”

He declined to say who the other potential bidders were.

So far it has not been revealed exactly who submitted the offer. Jeff Tanenbaum, president of ThreeSixty Asset Advisors, which helped run the auction with Tranzon Asset Advisors, said there were simply too many inquiries.

If dissidents buy Infowars’ properties and Jones takes over, he should be able to build new platforms fairly quickly, said Melissa Zimdars, an associate professor of communications and media at Merrimack College in Massachusetts.

“As long as there is an audience hungry for his content — and there is — he will be able to use X and his various social media platforms,” he said in an email.