The Onion bills itself as “the world’s leading news publication, providing highly acclaimed and universally revered coverage of the latest national, international and local news events” and claims to have 4.3 billion daily readers. Recent headlines include: “Trump’s Boys Fight Over Who Will Lead Foreign Policy Meetings,” “Oklahoma Law Requires Ten Commandments Posted in Every Womb” and “Man Forgets Difference Between meteorites and meteorites struggles to describe what just killed his Dog.”

The publication consulted on the RFP with some of the Sandy Hook families who have sued Jones for defamation and emotional distress in lawsuits in Connecticut and Texas, the families’ attorneys said.

“Our clients knew that true accountability meant an end to the Infowars and an end to Jones’ ability to spread lies, pain and fear on a massive scale,” said Christopher Mattei, an attorney for the families.

Everytown for Gun Safety said it will use Infowars platforms to raise awareness about gun violence.

Sand hook Families sued Jones and his company for repeatedly saying on his show that the shooting that killed 20 children and six educators in Newtown, Conn., was a hoax staged by crisis actors to incite more gun control.

Parents and children of many victims testified that they were traumatized by Jones’ plots and threats from his supporters.

Before signing off on Thursday, Jones repeatedly told listeners that the bankruptcy trustee and others were in the building and threatening to shut down the show at any time.

Sealed bids for private auctions opened Wednesday. Both supporters and detractors of Jones had expressed interest in purchasing Infowars.

Jones told his listeners that if his supporters won the auction, he could stay on the Infowars platforms. The bankruptcy trustee named First United American Companies, an affiliate of one of Jones’ product sales sites, as a “backup offering” in case the purchase of The Onion fell through.

–Dave Collins, Associated Press