The Onion buys Infowars at Alex Jones’ bankruptcy auction. No, seriously.

Infowars has a new owner.

The show started 30 years ago by Alex Jones, the Austin-based carnival barker turned conspiracy peddler, was bought by the satirical publication The onion and families of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre at a federal bankruptcy auction Wednesday.

The site was immediately closed on Thursday morning.

The bid to buy Free Speech Systems, the show’s parent company, must be approved by the federal bankruptcy court overseeing the liquidation. Jones said Wednesday it will continue broadcasting regardless of whether the site continues.

“This building and equipment are not Infowars. The website Infowars.com is not Infowar. I am Infowar,” he said.

Jones owes the families $1.5 billion in restitution after being found guilty of defamation in Texas and Connecticut. On his flagship show, Infowars, Jones spent years calling survivors of the mass shooting that killed 20 children and six adults “crisis actors,” making them targets of death threats and intimidation.

Jones was declared bankrupt in 2022. A federal bankruptcy court has begun selling the media empire he built to pay off the Sandy Hook families.

Jones’ media and intellectual properties were auctioned off on Wednesday. The onion and the Sandy Hook families submitted a successful bid to purchase Free Speech Systems. Families will donate part of their damages to pay for the purchase, NPR reports.

Jones’ remaining assets related to Infowars will be auctioned early next month.

In a statement, an attorney for the Sandy Hook families said the move represents “real accountability” for families in their yearslong case against Jones.

“They are heroes, and it has been an honor and a privilege to be their advocate throughout this fight,” said Christopher Mattei. “By divesting Jones of Infowars assets, The Onion families and team have performed a public service and will meaningfully hinder Jones’ ability to do more damage.”

As of Thursday morning, Jones was still broadcasting from his South Austin studio on X, formerly known as Twitter. Jones said he did not believe the bidding process was competitive and declined to proceed with the purchase The onion. He promised to challenge the offer in court.

This is a development story. Check back for updates.