Apple, Facebook, YouTube, and Spotify remove Alex Jones and Infowars in coordinated 24-hour period
On August 5–6, 2018, Apple, Facebook, YouTube, and Spotify each took action against Alex Jones and Infowars in a roughly 24-hour window, removing podcasts and channels and unpublishing Pages with millions of combined followers. The companies cited hate-speech and harassment policy violations. Jones characterized the simultaneous actions as a coordinated 'mega purge.' Twitter banned Jones the following month. Jones's personal X account was restored by Elon Musk in December 2022; YouTube and Facebook removals remain in place.
Dates: Apple Podcasts removal August 5, 2018; Facebook, YouTube, and Spotify actions August 6, 2018; Twitter permanent suspension September 2018; X reinstatement December 2022. Parties: Alex Jones; Infowars; Apple; Facebook (Meta); YouTube (Google); Spotify; Twitter (X). What happened: Each platform removed Jones/Infowars content over approximately 24 hours, citing hate speech, harassment, dehumanizing language, and child-safety policy violations. Combined followings exceeded several million. Platforms' stated reasons: Repeated violations of hate-speech, harassment, and dehumanization policies. Jones's response: Called the actions a coordinated political purge. Outcome: Removals largely persist on YouTube and Facebook. X account restored under Musk in 2022. Jones separately faced civil verdicts in defamation cases related to Sandy Hook coverage, which are distinct from the platform actions.