Amid lawsuits over Sandy Hook shooting denial, InfoWars files for bankruptcy

Amid lawsuits¹ over Sandy Hook shooting denial, InfoWars files for bankruptcy²

Conspiracy³ theorist Alex Jones's website Infowars has filed for bankruptcy. The move could put on hold defamation⁴ lawsuits over false claims that the Sandy Hook shooting was a hoax⁵.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

The far-right conspiracy broadcaster Alex Jones is seeking bankruptcy protection for three of his companies. Jones lied about the Sandy Hook school shooting, an attack in which 20 children and six school employees were killed in Newtown, Conn. He is the target of several defamation lawsuits from victims' families who say his hoaxes⁶ endangered them. NPR's John Burnett reports.

JOHN BURNETT, BYLINE⁷: The embattled conspiracy-monger is trying to save his broadcast and online business, InfoWars, as more courts find him liable for defaming the families of dead schoolchildren. Jones' latest move seeks to suspend civil lawsuits while he reorganizes his debts. In a bankruptcy filing, Jones indicated that InfoWars' liabilities could be as much as $10 million, far outstripping⁸ assets of no more than $50,000. The 49 creditors⁹ listed are the parents who are suing him. Their children were among 26 victims massacred by a deranged¹⁰ gunman who burst into an elementary school in Newtown, Conn., nearly a decade ago. Jones falsely claimed on air that it never happened, that the federal government staged the mass shooting, though he later recanted.

Plaintiffs' attorney Mark Bankston.

MARK BANKSTON: None of Mr. Jones' ridiculous tricks have worked in the past. This one will fare no better.

BURNETT: The pugnacious¹¹ radio personality has been booted off Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and other mainstream¹² platforms for promoting hate speech and lies, but InfoWars is still broadcast on a hundred radio stations, as well as his website. A new book about Sandy Hook from New York Times journalist Elizabeth Williamson states that the InfoWars online store brought in $50 million in revenue in a single year in its heyday¹³ during the administration of Donald Trump¹⁴, who is a fan. The store's extensive offerings include expensive alternative medicines, freeze-dried food and survivalist gear. Says Williamson...

ELIZABETH WILLIAMSON: These traditionally have all been his kinds of products that cater¹⁵ to this distrust of the federal government and established science.

BURNETT: For his part, Jones contends the defamation lawsuits are violating his First Amendment¹⁶ rights. Here he is on a broadcast earlier this month.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

ALEX JONES: ...The attacks. And we're still there because of you keeping us on the air. And they want to bully¹⁷ all of us. They want to control all of us. As we warned you, first it's Alex Jones, then it's everybody else. Well, now...

BURNETT: Jury selection was supposed to begin next Monday in Austin, where InfoWars is based, in the first case to come to trial. A state judge issued a default judgment¹⁸ against Jones for ignoring the court's orders. And if the trial goes forward, a jury will determine monetary¹⁹ damages for two Sandy Hook families. It's unclear whether the bankruptcy filings will delay this and other civil lawsuits against Alex Jones.

John Burnett, NPR News, Austin.

1 lawsuits   

n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权，耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
• I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多，赢的也多，输的也多。 来自辞典例句

2 bankruptcy   

n.破产；无偿付能力

参考例句：

• You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产，就必须节省开支。
• His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。

3 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

4 defamation   

n.诽谤；中伤

参考例句：

• Character defamation can be either oral or written.人格诽谤既可以是口头的也可以是书面的。
• The company sued for defamation.这个公司因受到诽谤而提起诉讼。

5 hoax   

v.欺骗，哄骗，愚弄；n.愚弄人，恶作剧

参考例句：

• They were the victims of a cruel hoax.他们是一个残忍恶作剧的受害者。
• They hoax him out of his money.他们骗去他的钱。

6 hoaxes   

n.恶作剧，戏弄( hoax的名词复数 )v.开玩笑骗某人，戏弄某人( hoax的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The disc jockey, a young separatist named Pierre Brassard, has made his name with such hoaxes. 这位名叫彼埃尔 - 布拉萨尔的音乐节目主持人，是一名年轻的分离主义者，以制造这类骗局闻名。 来自百科语句
• This chain-letter hoaxes, has mutated over the years. 这一骗局多年来在互联网上不断发展和变异。 来自互联网

7 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

8 outstripping   

v.做得比…更好，（在赛跑等中）超过( outstrip的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Demand is outstripping supply. 需求快超过供给了。
• Demand is outstripping current production. 现在需求逐渐超过了生产能力。 来自辞典例句

9 creditors   

n.债权人，债主( creditor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They agreed to repay their creditors over a period of three years. 他们同意3年内向债主还清欠款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Creditors could obtain a writ for the arrest of their debtors. 债权人可以获得逮捕债务人的令状。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 deranged   

adj.疯狂的

参考例句：

• Traffic was stopped by a deranged man shouting at the sky.一名狂叫的疯子阻塞了交通。
• A deranged man shot and killed 14 people.一个精神失常的男子开枪打死了14人。

11 pugnacious   

adj.好斗的

参考例句：

• He is a pugnacious fighter.他是个好斗的战士。
• When he was a child,he was pugnacious and fought with everyone.他小时候很好斗，跟每个人都打过架。

12 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。

13 heyday   

n.全盛时期，青春期

参考例句：

• The 19th century was the heyday of steam railways.19世纪是蒸汽机车鼎盛的时代。
• She was a great singer in her heyday.她在自己的黄金时代是个了不起的歌唱家。

14 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

15 cater   

vi.(for/to)满足，迎合；(for)提供饮食及服务

参考例句：

• I expect he will be able to cater for your particular needs.我预计他能满足你的特殊需要。
• Most schools cater for children of different abilities.大多数学校能够满足具有不同天资的儿童的需要。

16 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

17 bully   

n.恃强欺弱者，小流氓；vt.威胁，欺侮

参考例句：

• A bully is always a coward.暴汉常是懦夫。
• The boy gave the bully a pelt on the back with a pebble.那男孩用石子掷击小流氓的背脊。

18 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

19 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。