Judge to hear arguments over The Onion's bid to buy Infowars

A bankruptcy judge will hear arguments on Monday over the auction that allowed satirical newspaper The Onion to buy Alex Jones' Infowars.

Jones is attempting to block the sale, claiming there was fraud and collusion in the Nov. 14 bankruptcy auction where The Onion was named the winning bidder.

Sandy Hook Defamation Ruling

Alex Jones declared bankruptcy and was forced to liquidate his assets after he was ordered to pay $1.4 billion to the families of victims in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut.

Jones called the 2012 shooting that killed 20 first-graders and six educators a hoax. He has since acknowledged the shooting happened.

A judge found Jones liable for defamation and emotional distress. All proceeds from the liquidation would go to Jones' creditors, which include the Sandy Hook families.

Jones is appealing the $1.5 billion ruling, citing free speech rights.

Alex Jones Claims Collusion in Infowars Auction

The Onion was declared the winning bidder for Jones' Infowars.

The live auction was held for the intellectual properties owned by Free Speech Systems Media Holdings, which includes Infowars, its production rights, archives and social media accounts.

The auction also packaged the Infowars store to include its web domain, trademarks, contracts, e-commerce platform and customer lists. Jones' store sells supplements and apparel.

Jones claims The Onion colluded with some of the families and a court-appointed trustee overseeing the liquidation process.

The other bidder, First United American Companies, runs a website affiliated with Jones that sells nutritional supplements.

First United American Companies offered $3.5 million, while The Onion offered $1.75 million in cash. The humor sites' bid also included a pledge to Sandy Hook families to forgo some or all of the auction proceeds due to them to give other creditors a total of $100,000 more than they would receive under other bids.

Court-appointed trustee Christopher Murray says the provisions made the lower bid more beneficial to the creditors.

Jones alleges the bid violated the rules of the auction and says Murray canceled an expected round of live bidding.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez said during a Nov. 14 hearing that he was concerned about the process and transparency.

Jones has called the auction "rigged and a "fraud" on his show.

What Happens Next

It is not clear how soon Lopez will issue a ruling.

He could allow The Onion to move forward with the purchase, order a new auction or name First United American Companies the winner.

If The Onion is declared the winner, it could kick Jones out of his Infowars studio in Austin.

"The Onion is proud to acquire Infowars, and we look forward to continuing its storied tradition of scaring the site’s users with lies until they fork over their cold, hard cash," said The Onion’s CEO Ben Collins in a statement.

The nonprofit Everytown for Gun Safety said it would be the "exclusive launch advertiser" for the reworked site. If the sale is approved, it is expected to launch in January 2025.

Jones has already set up a new studio, websites and social media platforms.

Lopez is also expected to rule on if Jones' personal X account, and its 3.3 million followers, should be included in the sale.

Lawyers for X submitted a court filing saying that the social media company is the owner of both Jones' and Infowars' accounts and that they have not given permission for them to be sold.