article_content: 
  alex jones  a prominent conspiracy theorist and the host of a popular right-wing radio show  has apologized for helping to spread and promote the hoax known as pizzagate. the admission on friday by mr. jones  the host of "the alex jones show" and the operator of the website infowars  was striking. in addition to promoting the pizzagate conspiracy theory  he has contended that the sept. 11 attacks were inside jobs carried out by the united states government and that the 2012 shooting at sandy hook elementary school in newtown  conn.  was a hoax concocted by those hostile to the second amendment. the pizzagate theory  which posited with no evidence that top democratic officials were involved with a satanic child pornography ring centered around comet ping pong  a pizza restaurant in washington  d.c.  grew in online forums before making its way to more visible venues  including mr. jones's show. and its prominence after the election drew attention to the proliferation of false and misleading news  much of it politically charged  that circulated on platforms like facebook  twitter and youtube.
article_headline: alex jones apologizes for promoting 'pizzagate' hoax