The Onion has major plans for Alex Jones’s conspiracy site

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The Onion, a satirical publication, has launched a second attempt to buy Infowars, a notorious conspiracy site.

So what? This is no joke. The Onion plans to turn Infowars into a parody of itself, or, in the words of its fictional CEO, “democratise psychological torture”. The deal needs sign off from a judge and may be challenged by the site’s far-right founder, Alex Jones. If it goes ahead, it will

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  diminish Jones’s ability to do harm through disinformation;

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  allow the families of Sandy Hook victims to achieve a degree of redress; and

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  show the enduring power of satire to go to places where traditional media cannot.

Onions have layers. Launched at a Wisconsin university in 1988, the Onion was founded as a campus rag before growing in stature to poke fun at the whole of America. It has guided the country through seven presidents and decades of national bloodletting.

And readers too. Despite past financial struggles, the Onion currently has more than 60,000 paid members, which gives it the same print circulation as the Chicago Tribune.

Nothing on Jones. Infowars was founded in 1999 as a way to sell conspiracy-themed videos. Over time it evolved into a fake news site and made Jones, a radio host by trade, into a household name. It regularly platforms white supremacists and other extremists. In Donald Trump’s first term it received millions of monthly visits and grossed more than $50m a year through a series of ventures, including the sale of diet supplements and body armour.

Downfall. Infowars went up for bankruptcy auction after Jones lost a $1.5bn defamation lawsuit for making false claims about the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting. Jones repeatedly said the attack, which killed 26 people, was a hoax. In 2022, he conceded that it was “100% real”. Although a judge ordered Jones to sell Infowars as part of the settlement, he still operates the site and the families of Sandy Hook victims are yet to receive the money they are owed.

Attempt one. Ben Collins, the CEO of the Onion’s parent company, Global Tetrahedron, first tried to buy the site in June 2024. Collins was previously an investigative reporter focused on extremism and conspiracy theories. The bid failed after a Texas judge was unconvinced that it had more value than a rival offer tabled by a group associated with Jones.

Attempt two. On Monday, the Onion said it had reached a deal with the bankruptcy receiver to take over Infowars. The deal would involve Global Tetrahedron leasing the site for $81,000 a month, with a view to buying it outright down the line.

Trans plans. Tim Heidecker, a comedian hired to run the new venture, has said he wants to parody the “modus operandi” of the site. But this may not involve a straight satire of Infowars and Jones. Heidecker suggested he might turn it into a platform for trans comedians.

Broader mission. Although the proposed licensing fee pales against the size of the defamation damages, it might go some way to unlocking payments to the Sandy Hook families. A lawyer for these families also said the Onion deal could “significantly degrade” Jones’s ability to do harm.

Is Jones angry? Yes. This week, a topless Jones said that he’d “checked with lawyers” and the Onion was in “deep shit”. He compared the publication to “body snatchers” and “skinwalkers”.

Will the deal go ahead? Not necessarily. The decision is in the hands of Maya Guerra Gamble, the Texas judge who blocked the first proposed sale.

What’s more… Jones could appeal any ruling and doesn’t intend to go anywhere. If the deal is confirmed, he says he will continue his flagship show under a different name.

Further reading: Peeling back 40 years of the Onion’s satirical newsroom

Photograph by Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images