Alex jones was unhappy with the way he was being portrayed in magan kelly's broadcast that night. One of his side kicks, a guy named owen schreyer, went on infa wars and said that neil couldn't have held his son that night because according to official reports, the families weren't allowed to see their children after their deaths. Jones later picked up on owen sheer's false claims and amplified them. And that was the genesis of the defamation lawsuit that neil and jessie's mam scarlet filed against alex jones.
This episode contains descriptions of distressing scenes.
In a landmark ruling, a jury in Texas ordered Alex Jones, America’s most prominent conspiracy theorist, to pay millions of dollars to the parents of a boy killed at Sandy Hook for the damage caused by his lies about the mass shooting.
What is the significance of the trial, and will it do anything to change the world of lies and misinformation?
Guest: Elizabeth Williamson, a feature writer based in the Washington bureau of The New York Times.
Background reading:
For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.