Google must compensate Australian politician for defamatory videos on YouTube

The Federal Court of Australia ordered Google to pay more than 500,000 dollars in damages to a politician after considering that he suffered defamation for videos posted on the YouTube platform, owned by the American internet giant.

In a series of posts in 2020, comedian Jordan Shanks accused then NSW Premier John Barilaro of corruption, imitating an Italian accent to make fun of his origins.

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Barilaro, who retired from politics that year, assured that the videos they were racist and had traumatized him, and he denounced the American giant for not withdrawing the videos offensive when his lawyers wrote him a petition in December 2020.

The court considered the publication of the videos on the platform of Google led to the premature resignation of political and “significantly traumatized him.”

In his reasoning, he notes that Shanks “needed a Youtube to spread its poison” and ensures that Google he was willing to join the comedian “to earn income as part of his business model.”

AFP contacted Google to comment on the case, but did not respond immediately.

The political affected had closed an extrajudicial pact with the comedian at the end of 2021, who promised to apologize publicly and a edit them videos that have received more than a million visits in Youtube.

Source: Elcomercio

Ronald Payne

I, Ronald Payne, am a journalist and author who dedicated his life to telling the stories that need to be said. I have over 7 years of experience as a reporter and editor, covering everything from politics to business to crime.