Alex Jones' pirate radio station, Liberty Radio, shut down amidst social media crackdown
Conservative conspiracy theorist and Infowars personality Alex Jones' Liberty Radio has dropped off the air amidst a brewing battle with the Federal Communications Commission. Allegedly, Liberty Radio operated on an unlicensed channel since at least 2013. After multiple warnings and letters, FCC was forced to take stern action, shutting down the Texas-based pirate radio station, which served as a flagship outlet for Jones.
In a lawsuit filed in the federal court in Austin, the defendants have been named as Walter Olenick and M. Rae Nadler-Olenick. According to multiple reports, the station operators were even levied a fine of $15,000 in 2014 for the violations despite repeated warnings. The FCC accuses that the Olenicks have refused to pay the amount.
Apparently, the couple has been running the radio station from their Austin apartment without a license since 2013. Due to which, the Olenicks have even been sued by the Department of Justice. At the same time, the pair has even received multiple letters and notes, telling them about the consequences if they continue the broadcast without acquiring a proper license, according to Deadline.
Finally, a lawsuit was filed last Friday in the U.S. District Court in Austin, in order to get the unlicensed radio station operators to pay the due fine.
In the meantime, the website for The Texas Liberty Radio - which broadcasts programmes like 'The Alex Jones Show', 'The Vaccine Myth w/ Shawn Siegel', and 'The Crypto Show' - has put up a notice, informing listeners about the current unavailability.
"Due to circumstances beyond our control, the current location site of the tower is no longer available as of December 7, 2017. If you are a property owner and would be interested in providing a new home for TXLR, please email us at info@txlr.net. In the meantime, please enjoy TXLR's programming online by clicking the listen link above."
The latest move comes as another blow for the media personality, Jones, who in the recent times has been shunned by major outlets over his hate-laced content and leaning towards conspiracies and fake news. Even Twitter, after receiving backlash for lack of action, suspended Jones' accounts for a week.
The action was taken over violation of Twitter’s content policy against speech or groups that “use or promote violence against civilians to further their causes.”