As the first of several defamation trials against Alex Jones comes to an end, we should never lose sight of the suffering of the plaintiffs, the Sandy Hook families. Jones, creator of the Infowars media empire, has made a career out of spreading lies and conspiracy theories. The mental torture, stalking, and death threats received by the survivors in Newtown, Connecticut, at the hands of Jones and his fans, are a reminder of the terrible power of disinformation.
“A lot of folks are centering Alex when they should be centering the bravery and catharsis of Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis,” said Dan Friesen, cohost of the Knowledge Fight podcast, which has devoted more than 700 episodes to critically examining Jones.
This is a tall order, because making himself the center of attention is one of Jones’ most carefully honed skills. He’s an expert at saying and doing things so outrageous that the progressive left can’t help but share them—always in horror and disgust, but reaping him new viewers and more clicks nonetheless. (Even the Texas Observer is not immune from dwelling on Jones’ antics.)
