[1][4] While Collins was employed at The Daily Beast, Hurst's girlfriend Alison Parker was shot and killed on live television.

[5] Though Collins had not met Parker,[5] the incident and its aftermath deeply affected him; he decided to pursue reporting about online conspiracy theories and the far right after that.

[4] When offered an opportunity to work at NBC News in March 2018, Collins accepted it on the condition that he would be allowed to bring Zadrozny along to join him.

[11][12] On November 14, 2024, Collins won the assets of website InfoWars at auction with support of the families of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

[13] The federal judge overseeing the bankruptcy case of Jones, Christopher Lopez, ordered an evidentiary hearing regarding the auction, saying "I’m going to figure out exactly what happened" and that "no one should feel comfortable with the results of this auction.”[14]