Alex Jones’ Infowars is attempting to profit from the coronavirus outbreak – By Timothy Johnson (Media Matters) / Feb 29 2020
Jones: “I am very sad about this virus and very sad about the bioweapons and things that are going on, but it is an opportunity for people to take advantage of the products we have”
Far-right conspiracy theory outlet Infowars has been aggressively hawking bulk food packages at inflated prices while spreading wild conspiracy theories about the coronavirus outbreak. Since December, the price of bulk food at Infowars’ online store has more than doubled with the biggest package costing nearly $3,000.
On December 31, China announced an outbreak of COVID-19, a novel coronavirus that started in Wuhan City, with the first known case dating back to December 1. The disease has since spread beyond China and is currently present in 53 countries, including the United States, and has stricken more than 83,000 people.
Infowars is selling bulk food at recently increased prices
As the virus continues to spread, and a pandemic becomes more likely, Alex Jones is using Infowars to panic his viewers while also trying to profit from them.
Infowars operates InfowarsStore.com, which sells dietary supplements, apparel, firearm accessories, and bulk food. The page for bulk food has been using the coronavirus outbreak as a sales hook. A video ad has appeared at times on the store’s “emergency survival foods” page with the title, “EMERGENCY SURVIVAL FOODS: Coronavirus Clearance Sale.” In the video, Jones urges viewers to buy Infowars bulk food packages, claiming that other sellers are sold out, but that Infowars can ship within seven to 10 days. (When accessed on February 28, the Infowars Store now says “Shipping WILL be delayed on many orders, potentially 6-8 weeks or more in rare cases.”)
In the advertisement, Jones explicitly references coronavirus, saying, “I noticed there were reports that food prices in general were going to be going up because of the crisis in China and surrounding areas and with how deadly this coronavirus is” and claims, “This is the lowest price you’re going to find anywhere, even when it’s at its regular price.” He also suggests that buyers should act before it is too late, saying, “You can feel it in your bones, big stuff is coming down, whether it’s coronavirus or something else, now is the time to get prepared and I suggest folks get their storable food at InfowarsStore.com while you still can.”
Jones urges buyers to consider large purchases, saying, “I personally have ordered more storable food just last week because I have to be able to take care of not just myself but my neighbors, because believe me, hungry starving neighbors are not a good thing to have and so it’s simple: You better hide your food or you better have extra.” During the video, Infowars packages with prices up to $2,987.00 are shown.
Continue to article: https://www.mediamatters.org/coronavirus-covid-19/alex-jones-infowars-attempting-profit-coronavirus-outbreak
