One Nation senator Malcolm Roberts hailed American conspiracy theorist Alex Jones as “a beacon of hope around the world” after the shock jock spent years claiming the Sandy Hook school massacre was staged and promoting the September 11 terrorist attacks as an inside job.

The remarks, made during an appearance on The Alex Jones Show in October 2024, add to scrutiny of Pauline Hanson’s long-time loyal colleague’s promotion of conspiracy theories.

The interview, which went unreported at the time, has re-emerged after the 71-year-old was condemned for refusing to rule out suggestions the Bondi massacre was a “false flag” earlier this year and using an antisemitic trope to claim “globalist parasites” had hijacked the United States government. He also described the US government as “the world’s greatest terrorist organisation”.

Roberts, first elected to represent Queensland on behalf of Hanson’s party in 2016, repeatedly praised Jones during the interview, which covered COVID-19, climate change and digital ID laws.

“Thank you so much for what you’re doing. You’ve been fighting a lone battle until fairly recently, and now people recognise that your credibility is very, very high. So, thank you so much for what you’re doing,” Roberts told Jones.

He later added: “You’re a beacon of hope around the world. I mean, just amazing.”

Jones became infamous for falsely claiming the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, in which 20 children and six staff members were murdered, was a staged “false flag” operation and that “no one died”.

He later acknowledged the massacre was real after families of the victims won almost $1.5 billion in defamation damages. Jones subsequently filed for bankruptcy and recorded his last show on his Infowars site in May when it was forced into liquidation.

Over many years, Jones claimed the Bush administration orchestrated the September 11 attacks by blowing up the World Trade Centre with “controlled demolitions”. He has also promoted conspiracy theories about “chemtrails”, chemicals in drinking water turning people gay and former US first lady Michelle Obama being male.

Roberts closed his interview by saying: “Thanks to you, Alex, because you have been under the pump for years and years and years, and you’ve been saying the same thing, and now there are many people around the world waking up. So thank you, and keep going.”

Roberts said in response that Jones had been vindicated “on many topics”, but he had not researched Sandy Hook, September 11 or Michelle Obama’s gender, so was unable to comment.

“Yes, SOME of Alex’s views are contentious. That is not a criteria for assessing a topic he or anyone else raises or questions. Instead, I rely on hard data,” he said.

“I am proud to have been a guest on Alex Jones’s show. He invites people capable of researching and thinking for ourselves and capable of questioning the mainstream narrative.”

One Nation, previously leading both Labor and the Coalition in several published opinion polls – including this masthead’s Resolve – has suffered a hit among voters over the past month since Hanson’s first National Press Club address.

She has courted controversy in recent days by appearing alongside far-right British anti-Islam agitator Tommy Robinson, who has said she’s “destined to be the next leader of Australia”.

Last month, the Executive Council of Australian Jewry condemned Roberts after he claimed “globalist parasites” had hijacked the US government, turning it into “the world’s greatest terrorist organisation”.

Roberts used similar phrasing in his interview with Jones, saying government policies in Commonwealth countries in particular were driven by “globalists … unelected parasites who are fronts for big corporations, who are fronts for a few people that own them and control them”. A transcript of the conversation remains on his website.

He faced criticism in May after he declined to dismiss suggestions the Bondi massacre was a “false flag”. Roberts told the interviewer he doubted it was a hoax, but did not have the data to rule it out completely.

When asked at a press conference while standing next to his colleagues, he said: “First of all, it’s an absurd proposition. Second thing, I reinforce the fact that I make decisions and statements based on data, and I don’t have data on that.”

Hanson then interjected to say: “I will answer, because I’ve had this discussion with Senator Roberts. There is no false flag.”

Opposition defence spokesman James Paterson said it was “strike three for Malcolm Roberts”.

“First he speculated the Bondi terror attack was a false flag. Then he called the United States the world’s greatest terrorist organisation. Now he’s praising a 9/11 truther and school-shooting denier,” he said.

“How much is Pauline Hanson willing to tolerate from her colleague before she publicly condemns him for these unhinged comments?”

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Rob Harris is the national correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age based in Canberra. He is a former Europe correspondent.Connect via email.