Judge rejects sale of Alex Jones’ Infowars to The Onion in dispute over bankruptcy auction
HOUSTON (AP) — A federal judge on Tuesday night rejected the sale of the conspiracy platform Infowars to The Onion satirical news outlet after Alex Jones claimed that a recent bankruptcy auction was fraught with illegal collusion. The Onion was named the winning bidder on Nov. 14 over a company affiliated with Jones. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez’s decision means Jones can stay at Infowars in Austin, Texas. The Onion had planned to kick Jones out and relaunch Infowars in January as a parody. At the end of a lengthy two-day hearing in a Texas courtroom, Lopez criticized the auction process as flawed and said the outcome “left a lot of money on the table” for families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. “You got to scratch and claw and get everything you can for them,” Lopez said. The Onion offered $1.75 million in cash and other incentives for Infowars’ assets in the auction. First United American Companies, which runs a website in Jones’ name that sells nutritional supplements, bid $3.5 million. Lopez cited problems — but no wrongdoing — with the auction process. He said he did