Here’s my take on Alex Jones.

I have no respect for the man. I don’t know that I agree about him not being racist. He buys into some troubling conspiracy theories about the Jews.

But the problem is not primarily that he’s racist. It’s not just that he’s a crazy conspiracy theory nut, and it’s not just that some of the conspiracies he touts are dangerous and grossly offensive.

The problem is that he’s a liar.

Joe Rogan has a lot of controversial right-wing people on his show, and there’s a big controversy over whether or not he should be giving these people a platform. Rogan’s position is that it’s worth having conversations with these people so that we can use our common ground to try and build bridges.

I agree with him that a person’s political ideology should not disqualify them from coming on the show. If someone has been accused of being racist or homophobic or whatever else, I’m even okay with them coming on and trying to set the record straight (provided that the host doesn’t just lob softball questions at them).

The single disqualifying trait should be intellectual dishonesty. If someone is a known liar, there is no reason you should give them a platform to spread their lies. Because they are not arguing in good faith.

Alex Jones is a liar. This is known. He does not deserve a platform to spread his lies. People like Rogan should stop bringing him on their shows.