2024 | Alex Jones Fighting Attempt To Sell His Social Media Account Rights In Infowars Auction

Alex Jones, a conspiracy theorist, is attempting to prevent his personal social media accounts from being sold in the upcoming auction of his Infowars media platform to pay more than $1 billion owed to relatives of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, claiming that doing so would violate his privacy and deny him the opportunity to start over after bankruptcy.

The trustee in charge of liquidating and selling Infowars and its parent company, Free Speech Systems, asked a federal judge on Friday to include the social media accounts in the November and December auctions. The judge postponed a ruling on the case for at least a week.

Alex Jones | AP News Image

Alex Jones Fighting Attempt To Sell His Social Media Account Rights In Infowars Auction

Jones’s lawyers contend that Infowars or FSS does not hold the personal media profiles that use his real name but by him personally and should, therefore, be regarded as part of his “persona” that cannot be owned by anybody other than himself.

They say that trustee Christopher Murray does not have the power to sell the social media accounts and warn that a purchaser may face challenges over whether they were obtained legally.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez in Houston said a proposed ruling on the future sale of the social media accounts that protected Jones’ right to sue over ownership later was ambiguous, and he scheduled another hearing in a week.

“We should have great clarity and everybody agrees that something can be sold before it can be sold,” Lopez told the media. “I want a buyer or bidder to know exactly what they believe they can buy. I do not want to put a potential buyer at risk of litigation.”

The trustee also wants to be able to sell the rights to revenues from Jones’ book “The Great Reset: And the War for the World,” which was published in August 2022, and his video game “Alex Jones NWO Wars,” which was launched in 2023 and stars Jones as the hero in a shooting game.

Despite his company’s impending closure, Jones has promised to continue his discussion shows through other means, including a new website and personal social media profiles. He has also recommended that his fans purchase Infowars’ assets, allowing him to continue hosting his show as an employee under the Infowars brand in the company’s hometown of Austin, Texas.

In court filings, the trustee’s legal team argued that Jones’ X account, as well as others on Telegram, Gab, Parler, and other platforms, “are frequently used to promote and post Infowars content, and in some cases, have a significant number of followers.” Jones’ X account has about 3 million followers.

The trustee contended that the social media accounts of influencers, celebrities, and political figures had become valuable assets and that Jones’ accounts had piqued the attention of various parties interested in purchasing them.

Jones’ attorneys stated that if they were sold, the buyer would determine the outcome of the action.

“We got comfortable with the trustee that if certain parties were the successful bidder, there would be litigation later, but if certain parties were the successful bidder, there wouldn’t be litigation later,” Vickie Driver, one of Jones’ attorneys, told the judge.

Alex Jones | AP news Image

Alex Jones Fighting Attempt To Sell His Social Media Account Rights In Infowars Auction

“There is value to some folks in buying these assets and using them in one way, and value to other folks to use them in another way,” Mr. Driver stated.

Jones and his company both declared bankruptcy in 2022, the same year Sandy Hook families won nearly $1.5 billion in defamation and emotional distress lawsuits against Jones for repeatedly claiming the 2012 school shooting was a hoax staged by “crisis actors” to pass more gun control legislation. The Newtown, Connecticut, massacre killed 20 first-graders and six educators.

During two civil cases in Texas and Connecticut, parents and children of many of the victims testified that Jones’ phony conspiracies and the conduct of his followers had traumatized them. They claimed they were hounded and threatened by Jones’ supporters, some of whom visited the mourning families in person, claiming the shooting never occurred and their children did not exist. One parent stated that someone threatened to dig up his deceased son’s grave.

Jones is appealing the civil jury findings, citing free speech rights and challenging whether the families established a link between his views and the individuals who harassed and intimidated the relatives. He has since acknowledged that the incident took place.

SOURCE | AP