The conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, who was ordered to pay nearly $1bn in damages to families of those killed in the Sandy Hook school shooting, has filed for bankruptcy.

Jones, the founder of InfoWars, a far-right conspiracy website, was sued after he accused relatives of children and teachers who died in the shooting of being actors who faked the massacre.

Twenty pupils, all aged six or seven, and six staff members were killed in the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut in December 2012.

Last month Jones was ordered to pay $965m (£870m) in damages.

The controversial host has been been banned from virtually all mainstream social media as a result of his conspiracy theories.

However, he still streams content on his own platform to a devoted online following.

On Thursday Jones made headlines around the world again after having Kanye West on for an interview in which the rapper praised Hitler.

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Despite Jones’ social media exile clips of his talk with the rapper were circulated widely, with West’s views on the Nazis prompting widespread outrage.

He said to the rapper: “You’re not Hitler, you’re not a Nazi, so you don’t deserve to be called that and demonised.”

West, whose face was hidden by a black mask, replied: “Well, I see good things about Hitler also.

“I love everyone, and Jewish people are not going to tell me, ‘you can love, you know, us’… every human being has something of value that they brought to the table, especially Hitler.”

Originally hailing from Austin, Texas, 48-year-old Jones began working in cable TV in the 1990s where he picked up a cult following thanks to his conspiracy theories.

In 1999 he cofounded the website InfoWars, which became popular in online conspiracy circles, reportedly racking up more than 10 million visits a month in 2017.

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