Facing Consequences: Accountability for Spreading Misinformation

Soon after the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting, in which 20 children and six adults were murdered, Infowars’ Alex Jones began to push the false idea that the tragedy was a hoax perpetrated by the U.S. government to promote gun restrictions. So a group of parents decided to sue Jones for defamation, and in 2022 they were awarded a $1.5 billion settlement. 

This month, a bankruptcy judge ordered Jones to liquidate some of his personal assets to help cover the judgment. Jones was allowed to keep his controlling stake in the Infowars conspiracy site for now, but the site could be shut down within a matter of months. 

Elahe Izadi sits down with media reporter Will Sommer to talk about Jones’s fall and what it could mean for the future of the misinformation landscape.

Today’s show was produced by Peter Bresnan. It was edited by Lucy Perkins and Reena Flores and mixed by Sean Carter. 

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