Free Speech Clash in Digital Court | Auckland News

Political commentator Ani O’Brien is at the center of a high-profile digital harassment case after accusing blogger Martyn Bradbury of posting abusive and ridiculing content that caused her significant distress, depression, and fear for her safety. Netsafe has launched an investigation into potential breaches of indecency and harassment laws. A judge recently granted temporary removal of four blog posts but denied Bradbury’s request for a public apology — a stance he refuses to budge on, even offering to face jail time to defend free speech. The Free Speech Union, of which O’Brien is a board member, has criticized the case as an abuse of process and called for reform of reporting restrictions under the Harmful Digital Communications Act, arguing interim orders shouldn’t override public interest before full legal scrutiny. O’Brien insists her case is separate from the union’s position, clarifying she never sought to silence Bradbury’s criticism — only to secure temporary court protections during proceedings. She accuses Bradbury of exploiting the situation to frame himself as a martyr. The next court date is December 9th, when interim measures will remain in place, and sensitive details of the alleged harmful content will stay under wraps until then. Listen in comfort:Get a discount on a Soli Pillow: http://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/da32a54fc23b8f1f