- Alex Jones relied on his writers to verify false stories about the Sandy Hook shooting, an InfoWars producer testified.
- "Alex lets the writers do their research," InfoWars producer Daria Karpova told a Texas court.
Far-right conspiracy broadcaster Alex Jones relied on his writers and did not personally verify the untrue stories about the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre published by his InfoWars media company, a producer testified at his defamation damages trial on Wednesday.
InfoWars producer Daria Karpova made the comments in a Texas courtroom as she was questioned about a 2014 InfoWars video titled, "Sandy Hook deaths missing from FBI report."
"There are photos of kids that are still alive that they said died," Jones said in the September 2014 video that was played for the 12-person Travis County District Court jury.
Lawyer Mark Bankston, who is representing the parents of a boy slain in the school rampage that left 26 dead, asked Karpova about whether Jones should have verified that before telling it to his audience of millions.
"Mr. Jones should have verified that if he was going to say something that outrageous, right?" Bankston asked Karpova, who responded, "I can't speak to what was going through his head at that time."
The InfoWars producer testified that "Alex was relying on the writers … Alex lets the writers do their research."
Pressed at another point about fact-checking in a series of May 2014 videos tag-lined "The front line of truth," the producer answered, "We want them to figure out themselves if it's true, or not."
Karpova also told the court that InfoWars' video titles are "meant to grab audience's attention."
Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, the parents of 6-year-old Jesse Lewis who was killed in the Sandy Hook mass shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, are seeking $150 million in damages from Jones over his decade-long "massive campaign of lies" about the deadliest school massacre in US history, Bankston said on Monday during his opening statements.
Jones, the founder of InfoWars, has repeatedly and falsely told his audience that the mass shooting was a "giant hoax" that was staged by the government with "actors."
He has already been found liable for defamation by default by courts in Texas and Connecticut.
The Texas jury in the civil case will determine how much money Jones must pay Heslin and Lewis.