Kyrie Irving Amplifies Conspiracy Theory Advanced by Alex Jones

In addition to being the Brooklyn Nets' starting point guard, Irving serves on the Executive Committee of the NBA Players Association as Vice President.

No stranger to controversy and conspiracy theories, Kyrie Irving took to Instagram Thursday afternoon to spread a tirade by unhinged far-right media personality Alex Jones.

Irving shared a 2002 Infowars video in which Jones blusters on about how "facts and common sense" prove a secret society of worldwide elites are intent on taking over the planet. "There is a tyrannical organization calling itself the 'New World Order,' pushing for worldwide government," Jones says in the clip. "A cashless society. Total and complete tyranny. By centralizing and socializing healthcare, the state becomes God when it comes to your health. And by releasing diseases and viruses and plagues up on us, we basically get shoved into their system where human beings are absolutely worthless."

The New World Order (NWO) conspiracy, which gained popularity in the early 1990s, posits that a cabal of elites secretly works in tandem to orchestrate global affairs to enslave populations worldwide. According to a published study by the Middlebury Institute, the rhetoric promulgated by backers of this conspiracy may "appear innocuous at first," but it "presents a real-world danger, as it promotes a fatalistic worldview for adherents, possibly inciting them to commit violence against communities, infrastructure, and individuals deemed complicit in the NWO's implementation. This cabal narrative is commonly associated with other anti-Semitic conspiracy theories that claim Jewish culpability, alleging that they are behind the orchestration of the NWO, leading to an increased danger toward Jewish communities."

In 2017, the Anti-Defamation League wrote that NWO conspiracists "commonly believe that hundreds of concentration camps have been built in the U.S., ready to house dissenters; that the government will declare martial law, possibly on a pretext such as responding to a terrorist attack; and that the government will engage in mass gun confiscations."

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Kyrie Irving just posted a video clip entitled “Never Forget - Alex Jones Tried To Warn Us” with Jones claiming back in 2002 that a “New World Order” would release “plagues upon us…”

This type of rant is expected from Jones, a repugnant media personality with a massive online following. Just last month, Jones was ordered to pay $45 million in punitive damages to the parents of a 6-year-old boy killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook massacre (which claimed the lives of 20 first graders and six educators) - after Jones falsely claimed the deadly shooting was a hoax and that the parents of the slain children were "actors." 

"I've watched a lot of soap operas, and I've seen actors, and I know when I'm watching a movie and when I'm watching something real," Jones said about the grieving parents whose children had been gunned down. 

Jones has generated millions of dollars in profits for himself and his business partners by promoting the vile conspiracy that the Sandy Hook Elementary School attack in Newtown, Conn was part of a government-led plot to confiscate Americans' firearms. 

This is the same Alex Jones who claimed in November of 2016 that "Hillary Clinton has personally murdered and chopped up and raped [children]." Jones also previously asserted that the "Jewish mafia" controls Uber and the U.S. healthcare system. Mark Potok, a senior fellow at the Southern Poverty Law Center, characterized Jones as "the primary producer of conspiracy theories in America today."

For Irving, this isn't the first time he's dabbled in conspiracies. On a 2017 podcast, Irving insisted the Earth is flat. "This is not even a conspiracy theory. The Earth is flat. The Earth is flat," Irving said. "I'm telling you, it's right in front of our faces. They lie to us. They lie to us. The truth is right there; you just got to go searching for it. There is no concrete information except for the information that they're giving us." He later reiterated those beliefs in an interview with ESPN. Irving encouraged his fans to "do your own research" on the Earth's shape. 

A year later, Irving apologized for his unfounded claim. "I was definitely at that time, 'I'm a big conspiracy theorist. You can't tell me anything.' I'm sorry about all that," he said. "Even if you believe in that, don't come out and say that stuff. That's for intimate conversations because perception and how you're received, it changes. I'm actually a smart-ass individual."

Last year, Irving refused to get vaccinated against Covid-19, stating he was "standing with all those that believe what is right" and took issue with the notion of Americans "losing jobs to mandates." 

In May, on an episode of The ETCs with Kevin Durant and Eddie Gonzalez, Irving called himself a "martyr" when discussing his stance against the Covid-19 vaccine mandate. "I was not expecting a mandate to be brought down in a way where it wasn't going to let me play at all," Irving said. "I had the opportunity to play away games still, but there was no plan in place, there was no vision of how it was going to work for our team. And I think that really impacted not just me, but a lot of people. Just had to sit in that hot seat for a little bit and deal with it. The life of a martyr, bro."

Irving initially declared his reason for refusing to get vaccinated was to stand in solidarity with those willing to forfeit their livelihood. Yet, five months later, Irving was cleared to play in home games only after NYC Mayor Eric Adams issued the "Kyrie Carve Out" exemption - which only benefited a handful of rich professional athletes.

Irving follows the Instagram account "The FreeThoiughtPorject," which initially posted the Alex Jones clip that Irving shared with his 17.2 million followers on Thursday. Earlier this week, that account shared multiple videos arguing that the 9/11 attacks were not caused by terrorist-hijacked airplanes but rather staged by the government. This past weekend marked the 21st anniversary of the attacks. Jones is a well-known "9/11 truther." 

As of this morning, 19 hours after he initially shared the clip of Jones, Irving has still not deleted the post. With as much as Jones has been in the news of late, It's hard to fathom that Irving is unaware of the media personality's depraved and despicable assertions. As part of the recent lawsuits Jones has been involved in, parents of the children killed at Sandy Hook have described in detail how they've been terrorized and had their lives further wrecked by conspiracy theorists who have harassed and tormented them due to Jones' promotion of the "false flag" conspiracy. 

In addition to being the Brooklyn Nets' starting point guard, Irving serves on the Executive Committee of the NBA Players Association. Irving was elected Vice President of the NBPA by his peers at the Board of Player Representatives Meetings in 2020. 

I have reached out directly to both the Nets organization and the NBA Players Association for an official comment on Irving, via his Instagram, amplifying messages spread by Alex Jones but have not yet heard back from either party. Irving is also a prominent athlete on Nike's roster. I also requested a response from the company regarding Irving's online activity but have not yet heard back from Nike.