(Newser) – Alex Jones is maybe the nation's most well-known conspiracy theorist thanks to his controversial Infowars program. But the radio host is now locked in a custody dispute forcing his lawyers into an argument that surely won't please Jones' many followers: The attorneys say his on-air persona is largely an act, reports the Austin American-Statesman. “He’s playing a character,” attorney Randall Wilhite told the judge in a pretrial hearing. “He is a performance artist.” Jones and his ex-wife are fighting over custody of their three kids, who have lived with him since 2015, and jury selection begins on Monday. Her legal team got permission from the judge to play certain clips from the show during the trial as part of their argument that he's not fit to be a parent.

“He’s not a stable person,” Kelly Jones said in court. “He says he wants to break Alec Baldwin’s neck. He wants J-Lo to get raped." She says that because her ex-husband broadcasts from home, their three kids, ages 14, 12, and 9, are exposed to his rants. The story notes that Jones himself recently acknowledged on the air, after a particularly nasty attack on Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff, that his outbursts were a "form of art." Jones has famously called the Sandy Hook shooting a hoax, and he recently apologized for pushing the Pizzagate conspiracy, notes the Houston Chronicle. President Trump has appeared on the show and publicly supported Jones, prompting the daughter of a Sandy Hook victim to ask Trump to cut ties with him. (Read more Alex Jones stories.)

