But Friesen isn’t convinced it will be a severe blow. Many hope that the legal and financial jeopardy Jones’ is now facing will help curtail misinformation and conspiracy culture. “So they could be in a place where they could better understand what Alex is doing and what he brings to the table.” He endures the task in order to help others get insights into the misinformation phenomenon. “The reason that I do this is because I can stomach that boredom,” Friesen said.
#This american life alex jones trial#
Briana Sanchez/ReutersĪlex Jones' company files for bankruptcy amid Texas trial to award damages to Sandy Hook familiesįriesen has listened to countless hours of Jones’ program, and calls it an “incredibly boring experience.” Jones had been found to have defamed the parents of a Sandy Hook student for calling the attack a hoax, and the parents are seeking $150 million in compensatory and punitive damages for what they say was a campaign of harassment and death threats by Jones' followers. “But also that in order to make it interesting for anybody to listen to, we have to make it make something entertaining.”Īlex Jones walks into the courtroom in front of Scarlett Lewis and Neil Heslin, the parents of 6-year-old Sand Hook shooting victim Jesse Lewis, at the Travis County Courthouse in Austin, Texas, U.S. “We approach it with the understanding that it’s a serious topic,” Friesen said. The podcast format allows the hosts to go beyond Jones as a character and dive into the mechanisms of what he’s doing and why these conspiracy narratives exist. “People would like to focus on Alex being kind of a bombastic character that we can mock and make fun of, but this isn’t about him,” Holmes said. “Conspiracy culture is something that is created through the cracks of our regular society,” Holmes said.Īnd although their podcast focuses on scrutinizing Jones and his tactics, Holmes said the trial was really about the victims.
“Watching him from my perspective has gotten a lot less interesting.”īut despite Jones’ legal woes, Holmes said that the culture he’s helped engender has gotten a lot bigger. “During this whole stretch of time, his content itself has been essentially hollow,” Friesen said. The co-hosts have been covering Jones since 2017, watching his transformation from a seemingly untouchable figure to one that is now in serious legal and financial jeopardy. “I think it will stay with pretty much everyone there for the rest of their lives,” Friesen said. Friesen said the most powerful moment inside the courtroom was watching Jesse Lewis’ mom Scarlett Lewis give her testimony and speak directly to Jones. Hosts Dan Friesen and Jordan Holmes traveled to Texas to witness Jones’ trial first hand. A jury finds Infowars conspiracy theorist Alex Jones should pay $45.2 million in punitive damages to the parents of a Sandy Hook shooting victim
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