A Texas judge has blocked satire news outlet The Onion from purchasing Infowars, the website founded by far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.
The Onion brought the website out of bankruptcy in November when it pledged to relaunch the platform as a “very funny, very stupid website”.
US Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez criticised the auction process, stating that the court-appointed trustee of Infowars’ bankruptcy estate made a “good-faith error” by failing to encourage more bidding.
"This should have been opened back up, and it should have been opened back up for everybody," Judge Lopez said.
The decision leaves the door open for First American United Companies, a company linked to Jones, to make another bid for Infowars
First American United Companies was a rival bidder in the auction process.
As host and figurehead of InfoWars, Alex Jones rose to fame for promoting far-right political views and various conspiracy theories.
He gained notoriety for spreading misinformation about significant events, including the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting that killed 26 people, including 20 children.
Parents of the murdered children launched legal action against Jones, culminating in the bankruptcy of Infowars. They supported The Onion’s acquisition of the website.
Chris Mattei, a lawyer for the Sandy Hook families, said the verdict was disappointing.
"The families, who have already persevered through countless delays and roadblocks, remain resilient and determined as ever to hold Alex Jones and his corrupt businesses accountable for the harm he has caused," he said.
Jones praised the decision to block the acquisition in a litany of posts on Twitter/X.