"Gateway Pundit" Files for Bankruptcy Amid Legal Battles Over Election Disinformation

Gateway Pundit, a well-known far-right blog, is facing bankruptcy as it grapples with legal battles over its promotion of discredited claims about the 2020 election, founder Jim Hoft announced Wednesday. Despite the financial challenges, Hoft pledged to continue publishing.

Since its inception in 2004, Gateway Pundit has become a hub for conspiracy theories on various topics, including the 2020 election and school shootings. Its large readership has allowed it to push such stories from the internet's fringes to the broader pro-Trump right.

However, the site's history of spreading conspiracy theories has come at a cost for Hoft. In a message on the site, he stated that the blog's parent company would file for bankruptcy due to what he described as "progressive liberal" lawsuits. Hoft said the bankruptcy would help consolidate the legal cases against the site.

Although the Gateway Pundit is headquartered in Missouri, its parent company recently registered as a limited liability company in Florida and filed for bankruptcy in that state.

In its bankruptcy filing, the Gateway Pundit reported holding assets worth between $500,000 and $1 million and liabilities ranging from $100,001 to $500,000. The list of its 20 largest creditors consisted primarily of unnamed individuals.

While Hoft did not specify which lawsuits he was referring to, Gateway Pundit is facing legal action from Ruby Freeman and Wandrea Moss, two Georgia election workers who claim they received threats after the site accused them of ballot fraud without evidence.

Election offices have been inundated with waves of harassing messages following the publication of Gateway Pundit stories, often directing threatening and abusive language at staff members.

Defamation lawsuits are a strategy employed by pro-democracy groups, private companies, and individuals to hold people and organizations accountable for disseminating false information about elections. Those on the defense often refer to these lawsuits as “lawfare.”

Despite its financial troubles, Hoft is adamant about keeping the Gateway Pundit alive and thriving. He asserted that he "would not be deterred" from continuing his work at what he termed one of the nation's "most trusted independent media outlets."

Gateway Pundit, with its straightforward design and limited staff, remains one of the top 20 most-read conservative websites online, according to Howard Polskin, who monitors conservative media on his website, TheRighting.