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Alex Jones Picked on the Wrong People Alex Jones Picked on the Wrong People
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When a Connecticut civil jury found on Wednesday that Alex Jones should pay nearly $1 billion to the families of Sandy Hook victims and an F.B.I. agent whom he defamed on air, Mr. Jones was forced to confront an unwelcome trend: reality encroaching on his domain of lies, innuendo and prodigious amounts of noxious hot air. If he’d been paying attention, Mr. Jones would have seen this devastating judgment against him coming long ago. The fact that he didn’t speaks to how safe he felt in the bubble he had created — and how blind he was to the mounting risks of the claims he has made for years.When a Connecticut civil jury found on Wednesday that Alex Jones should pay nearly $1 billion to the families of Sandy Hook victims and an F.B.I. agent whom he defamed on air, Mr. Jones was forced to confront an unwelcome trend: reality encroaching on his domain of lies, innuendo and prodigious amounts of noxious hot air. If he’d been paying attention, Mr. Jones would have seen this devastating judgment against him coming long ago. The fact that he didn’t speaks to how safe he felt in the bubble he had created — and how blind he was to the mounting risks of the claims he has made for years.
Alex Jones rose to fame in large part by falsely claiming that mass casualty events are “false flags,” staged or allowed to happen by the government to advance a sinister, totalitarian system. He started doing this with the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, gaining him favor and influence among patriot and militia groups.Alex Jones rose to fame in large part by falsely claiming that mass casualty events are “false flags,” staged or allowed to happen by the government to advance a sinister, totalitarian system. He started doing this with the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, gaining him favor and influence among patriot and militia groups.
And then he kept going. Mr. Jones made similar claims about the Sept. 11 attacks, the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings, the 2016 Pulse nightclub mass shooting, the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting and of course, the Parkland shooting in 2018. These claims helped draw a large audience to his broadcasts and to the extensive online presence of Mr. Jones’s media empire, Infowars, before he and the network were deplatformed from most major social media sites in 2018 and 2019. And then he kept going. Mr. Jones made similar claims about the Sept. 11 attacks, the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings, the 2016 Pulse nightclub mass shooting, the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting and of course, the Parkland shooting in 2018. These claims helped draw a large audience to his broadcasts and to the extensive online presence of Mr. Jones’s media empire, Infowars, before he and the network were banned from most major social media sites in 2018 and 2019.
As Mr. Jones continued making these baseless claims, many of them sourced from the slimiest corners of the internet, he grew in power and influence in the conspiracy sphere. Customers flocked to his broadcasts and his products, visiting Infowars’ online store to buy vitamins and tubs of storable food to prepare for the inevitable collapse of society. But the larger world often ignored him or treated him as a bloviating, red-faced cartoon character who shouted, pounded his desk and made entertainingly weird statements about chemicals in the water “that turn the freaking frogs gay.” Perhaps it was easy to do so when Mr. Jones fixated his hostility on the Bushes, the Clintons and the so-called New World Order. His targets were too large to be hurt by the attention, and his theories too much like caricatures to feel like they mattered. As Mr. Jones continued making these baseless claims, many of them sourced from the slimiest corners of the internet, he grew in power and influence in the conspiracy sphere. Customers flocked to his broadcasts and his products, visiting Infowars’s online store to buy vitamins and tubs of storable food to prepare for the inevitable collapse of society. But the larger world often ignored him or treated him as a bloviating, red-faced cartoon character who shouted, pounded his desk and made entertainingly weird statements about chemicals in the water “that turn the freaking frogs gay.” Perhaps it was easy to do so when Mr. Jones fixated his hostility on the Bushes, the Clintons and the so-called New World Order. His targets were too large to be hurt by the attention, and his theories too much like caricatures to feel like they mattered.
But then he made a grave error: As his platform grew larger, eventually drawing the praise and attention of people like former President Trump, Mr. Jones began fixating on ever smaller targets. Instead of making generalized claims about government black helicopters and FEMA camps, he more regularly began naming specific, private citizens and companies as actors in large, global conspiracy theories. But then he made a grave error: As his platform grew larger, eventually drawing the praise and attention of people like former President Donald Trump, Mr. Jones began fixating on ever smaller targets. Instead of making generalized claims about government black helicopters and FEMA camps, he more regularly began naming specific private citizens and companies as actors in large global conspiracies.
With Sandy Hook, Mr. Jones also latched onto the “crisis actor” conspiracy theory, which holds that specific people affected by mass casualty events are in fact actors, hired to play the part of bereaved or murdered people. Through Infowars, he also gave fellow Sandy Hook conspiracy theorists an enormous megaphone to spout their awful claims.With Sandy Hook, Mr. Jones also latched onto the “crisis actor” conspiracy theory, which holds that specific people affected by mass casualty events are in fact actors, hired to play the part of bereaved or murdered people. Through Infowars, he also gave fellow Sandy Hook conspiracy theorists an enormous megaphone to spout their awful claims.
In both this week’s Connecticut civil award and in a Texas case earlier this year, in which a jury ultimately awarded the plaintiffs $49.3 million, family members of Sandy Hook victims testified about the rash of harassment, death threats and vile messages they received as soon as Mr. Jones focused his attention on them. In both this week’s Connecticut civil award and in a Texas case this year, in which a jury ultimately awarded the plaintiffs $49.3 million, family members of Sandy Hook victims testified about the rash of harassment, death threats and vile messages they received as soon as Mr. Jones focused his attention on them.
Robbie Parker, whose daughter Emilie was killed in the attack, was singled out; Mr. Jones repeatedly suggested that Mr. Parker was an actor and suggested his behavior at a news conference a day after his daughter’s death was “disgusting.” In his testimony, Mr. Parker described the devastating effects of Mr. Jones’s claims: He and his wife, Alissa, had to take down a Facebook memorial page for Emilie, because it was being deluged with vicious lies. Mr. Parker also testified that in 2016, four years after the attack and 3,000 miles away from its location, he was pursued down the street in Seattle by a man screaming obscenities at him, telling him that his daughter was alive, and demanding to know how much the government had paid him. Robbie Parker, whose daughter Emilie was killed in the attack, was singled out; Mr. Jones repeatedly suggested that Mr. Parker was an actor and suggested his behavior at a news conference a day after his daughter’s death was “disgusting.” In his testimony, Mr. Parker described the devastating effects of Mr. Jones’s claims: He and his wife, Alissa, had to take down a Facebook memorial page for Emilie, because it was being deluged with vicious lies. Mr. Parker also testified that in 2016, four years after the attack and 3,000 miles away from its location, he was pursued down the street in Seattle by a man screaming obscenities at him, telling him that his daughter was alive and demanding to know how much the government had paid him.
It didn’t stop with Sandy Hook. Mr. Jones continued fixing his ire, and that of his enormous audience, on private citizens and businesses. He urged his followers to investigate the Pizzagate conspiracy theory, which falsely claimed that a cabal of high-level Democrats were engaging in ritual child abuse in the basement of a Washington, D.C., pizza parlor. In 2017, facing a potential lawsuit, Mr. Jones issued a rare (for him) apology to the pizza parlor’s owner, James Alefantis, saying that “to my knowledge” Mr. Alefantis wasn’t engaged in human trafficking. Later that year, he retracted another wild false claim, saying he’d “mischaracterized” the yogurt company Chobani after Infowars had erroneously claimed that the company was “importing migrant rapists” into Idaho.It didn’t stop with Sandy Hook. Mr. Jones continued fixing his ire, and that of his enormous audience, on private citizens and businesses. He urged his followers to investigate the Pizzagate conspiracy theory, which falsely claimed that a cabal of high-level Democrats were engaging in ritual child abuse in the basement of a Washington, D.C., pizza parlor. In 2017, facing a potential lawsuit, Mr. Jones issued a rare (for him) apology to the pizza parlor’s owner, James Alefantis, saying that “to my knowledge” Mr. Alefantis wasn’t engaged in human trafficking. Later that year, he retracted another wild false claim, saying he’d “mischaracterized” the yogurt company Chobani after Infowars had erroneously claimed that the company was “importing migrant rapists” into Idaho.
Mr. Jones failed to recognize the emerging pattern: Smaller targets couldn’t easily ignore him, and they felt compelled to turn to legal threats to try to get him to stop.Mr. Jones failed to recognize the emerging pattern: Smaller targets couldn’t easily ignore him, and they felt compelled to turn to legal threats to try to get him to stop.
Mr. Jones was lucky that many Sandy Hook families chose to stay quiet for years about his reckless and deeply harmful actions toward them. But it is no surprise that eventually, seeing they were part of a larger pattern, those families decided to take collective action. Mr. Parker testified that even following the brutal harassment he and his wife faced after Emilie’s death, he wasn’t convinced he should sue Mr. Jones — until, in 2018, he spoke to a Parkland survivor and learned that Mr. Jones was targeting that person with the same kinds of lies. That conversation, Mr. Parker said, was a “catalyst” for him to start fighting back. The Connecticut families filed suit the same year.Mr. Jones was lucky that many Sandy Hook families chose to stay quiet for years about his reckless and deeply harmful actions toward them. But it is no surprise that eventually, seeing they were part of a larger pattern, those families decided to take collective action. Mr. Parker testified that even following the brutal harassment he and his wife faced after Emilie’s death, he wasn’t convinced he should sue Mr. Jones — until, in 2018, he spoke to a Parkland survivor and learned that Mr. Jones was targeting that person with the same kinds of lies. That conversation, Mr. Parker said, was a “catalyst” for him to start fighting back. The Connecticut families filed suit the same year.
Mr. Jones says he’ll appeal these cases “for years.” Whether he’s successful remains to be seen. But whatever his next move, we have a good idea of what to expect: more lies, more bluster and more flimsy justifications when his actions draw public opprobrium.Mr. Jones says he’ll appeal these cases “for years.” Whether he’s successful remains to be seen. But whatever his next move, we have a good idea of what to expect: more lies, more bluster and more flimsy justifications when his actions draw public opprobrium.
Alex Jones’s long and lucrative career has depended on the idea that his audience will take him seriously while everyone else — including the people he targets — will ignore him, letting him exist in an alternate reality. These two judgments show that while Mr. Jones may attempt to turn real-life tragedies into walk-on parts in his distorted fictional universe, he hasn’t escaped the real world. In that world, our world, there are consequences.Alex Jones’s long and lucrative career has depended on the idea that his audience will take him seriously while everyone else — including the people he targets — will ignore him, letting him exist in an alternate reality. These two judgments show that while Mr. Jones may attempt to turn real-life tragedies into walk-on parts in his distorted fictional universe, he hasn’t escaped the real world. In that world, our world, there are consequences.
Anna Merlan is a senior reporter at Motherboard, Vice News’ tech desk, and the author of the 2019 book “Republic of Lies: American Conspiracy Theorists and Their Surprising Rise to Power.”Anna Merlan is a senior reporter at Motherboard, Vice News’ tech desk, and the author of the 2019 book “Republic of Lies: American Conspiracy Theorists and Their Surprising Rise to Power.”
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