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The case’s final result was not unheard-of in a state with notoriously strict defamation laws, but it was unconventional that the defendant was not a further politician or a substantial-profile journalist, claimed Michael Douglas, a senior lecturer in non-public regulation at the College of Western Australia.
“It’s regular with the topic that this government is content material in using a very hefty-handed strategy to on-line speech that it does not like,” he reported. He added, “Cases like these are a warning that, except if some thing improvements, we’re likely to see extra and extra instances like this, and every Australian ought to tread very carefully before they do a quote retweet and phone a politician a name.”
Mr. Dutton has been open about his intent to crack down on deceptive or defamatory social media written content. In March, he explained to a local radio station, “Some of these individuals who are trending on Twitter or have the anonymity of various Twitter accounts, they’re out there putting out all these statements and tweets that are frankly defamatory — I’m going to commence to choose out some of them to sue.”
Primary Minister Scott Morrison echoed that sentiment in Oct, when he vowed that the authorities would do far more to hold social media giants accountable.
“Social media has grow to be a coward’s palace, where by folks can just go on there, not say who they are, ruin people’s life and say the most foul and offensive things to folks and do so with impunity,” Mr. Morrison said.
In Might, John Barilaro, then the deputy leading of New South Wales, sued an Australian YouTuber, Jordan Shanks, for defamation, saying that two films Mr. Shanks experienced uploaded improperly prompt he was corrupt, experienced committed perjury and engaged in blackmail. He also reported Mr. Shanks experienced been racist by attacking his Italian heritage, including contacting him a “con gentleman to the main, driven by spaghetti.”
Mr. Shanks’s channel, FriendlyJordies, which has 600,000 subscribers, is known for its comedy and political commentary.
