During his deposition on March 4th, Alex Jones claimed that he couldn't remember what the names of his kid's teacher were because "he had a big bowl of chili for lunch."
The infamous Infowars host, Alex Jones, is currently fighting for the custody of his three children in Austin, Texas. Well known for his "spirited" rants, and insane conspiracy theories, Jones has come under fire from both inside and out of the courthouse. Infowars is a show that mixes criticism of the government with really wild conspiracy claims. This is supposed to "reveal" what the media isn't telling you. His biography claims that he and his corporation are "seeking the truth and exposing the scientifically engineered lies of the globalists and their ultimate goal of enslaving humanity." Basically, he and his followers believe that the government is trying to demolish liberties and create a new world order dominated by corporations and banks. And to make his point, Jones yells and screams at the cameras in a very intimidating and bizarre way.
Some of his most outrageous claims include:
· The 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre was actually a government hoax. He claims that he isn't sure what really happened, but apparently, the signs are pointing to a hoax.
· The federal government actually carried out the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 themselves.
· The 2013 Boston Marathon bombing was staged.
After reading these theories, you might be wondering what Jones is like off camera. According to his lawyers, he's "playing a character," and is a "performance artist." These statements have caused confusion throughout the media, as many of his rants are highly offensive and can't possibly just be a "performance." Shortly after these comments were made, Jones said that the media actually misinterpreted the term "performance art," and he then compared himself to John Oliver and Stephen Colbert. He then further stated that his show was all about "hard news." Whatever that means.
What's most interesting to see in this case is the difficulties separating a work life from home, as his personality on the show is often brought up when discussing his character in the courtroom. His ex-wife Kelly Jones' attorney questioned him about his personal life, including his alcohol and drug use. Jones reportedly smokes pot once a year to test its strength, which "is how law enforcement does it." When a video clip shows him walking in front of the Capitol building before the inauguration, he looks drunk. He claims that he wasn't and stated that he doesn't drink on the set of Infowars.
One of the major frustrations that Jones has to face is that fact that there is a strict media gag on himself and anyone else involved in the custody case. This is a vital piece of Infowars, as attacking the media and its "false claims" happens on almost every episode. This has brought up the question on the role of journalism in the courtroom, as people argue that Jones himself is a journalist and should be allowed to report on his own case. Some debate has arisen around the judge and the ex-wife, as they might have already broken this gag order, as has Jones.
On April 21st, Jones asked for a mistrial due to a video clip being shown of him smoking marijuana on the Joe Rogan show. The judge, Orlinda Naranjo, rejected the request because, in the clip, Jones discusses the notorious Trump quote, "grab them by the pussy." Jones dismisses the controversy in it, even though now he claims that the clip was edited and that it didn't show him reprimanding the president. The clip was played in the courtroom, and Naranjo deemed it "political." This case has proved to be a huge difficulty for both attorneys and the judge, as it is almost impossible to determine which Infowars videos are inadmissible because they are just political and protected. Because of this, most of his damaging videos have not been allowed in the court.
Is this the right response? Should the videos be allowed to air in the courtroom because he claims that his media personality is just an act? In the courtroom, there is evidence that goes to show that his career dips into his personal life, as he exploded in the courtroom in the exact way he does on his show. When questioned about a situation where Jones allegedly attempted to prevent his son from seeing his mother, he couldn't handle the direct line of questioning.
"You sit here and twist it! You have won the award. You have no decency," Jones bellowed, almost in tears pointing his finger at his ex's attorney.
The attorney was waiting for a moment like that. "Is that how you treat your children? Is that how you treat Enya?" (Enya is Jones' current wife.)
As we can see, it's impossible to tell the difference between "Infowars Alex" and "Regular Alex." This case is especially important because the lives of three children are involved. Should they be allowed to live with someone who clearly has rage issues? Or are his anger management problems just a cloud of smoke that he casts to get more attention? Whatever it may be, Jones' case must be decided by the court of law, and NOT by the media.
