Elon Musk Objects to Transfer of InfoWars’ X Accounts to The Onion
A recent bankruptcy auction saw The Onion, a satirical publication, emerge as the winning bidder for InfoWars, a website founded by conspiracy theorist Alex Jones. However, the sale has hit a roadblock after a federal judge temporarily halted the deal. Adding another layer of complexity to the situation, Elon Musk has objected to the transfer of InfoWars’ X accounts to The Onion.
Musk’s platform, X Corporation, claims that it owns all X accounts on its platform, including those operated by Alex Jones and InfoWars. According to an objection filed in bankruptcy court, X Corporation argues that The Onion cannot purchase these accounts from Jones or his company, Free Speech Systems, because they are not his to sell.
This is not the first time Musk has intervened in Jones’ social media presence. In 2023, Musk restored the X accounts of Alex Jones and InfoWars, which had been “permanently banned” by Twitter’s previous leadership in 2018.
Musk’s lawyers claim that users do not actually own their profiles on the platform. Instead, they argue that users are granted a license to use X Corp’s services, which cannot be sold or transferred without explicit consent.
The legal filing states that X Corp does not object to the overall sale of Free Speech Systems to The Onion, but rather the transfer of the X accounts. The accounts in question include @infowars, @BANNEDdotVIDEO, @WarRoomShow, and @RealAlexJones.
As the situation unfolds, federal bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez has indicated that he may hold an evidentiary hearing next month to determine whether The Onion should be allowed to purchase Alex Jones’ media company. Ultimately, Lopez could allow The Onion to move forward with the purchase, order a new auction, or name another bidder as the winner.
