Former NSW deputy premier John Barilaro has told a court that Google's refusal to delete "vile, racist" videos made him hesistant to leave his home and drove him to consider "self-harm".
Mr Barilaro is suing the technology giant for defamation over two videos posted on its YouTube channel in 2020 by comedian Jordan Shanks, who is known online as FriendlyJordies.
Mr Shanks settled a separate defamation action brought by Mr Barilaro last year after apologising and agreeing to make a number of edits to his videos but no damages were paid.
Giving evidence in the case against Google in the Federal Court, Mr Barilaro became emotional as he described the impact of the tech giant's continued refusal to take down Mr Shanks's videos, which he said led him to consider self-harm.
"I hate Google," Mr Barilaro told the court.
"The abuse I've copped, I lay it square at the feet of Google."
The videos in question, titled "Bruz" and '"Secret Dictatorship", have attracted hundreds of thousands of views.
They claim Mr Barilaro is "a fat, decadent conman" and are filled with racial slurs and stereotypes, linking him to the Mafia and referring to him as a "greasy wog".
Despite numerous complaints to Google by Mr Barilaro's legal team, the videos remain online.
"I'm never going to get away from it – the damage is done," said Mr Barilaro, who quit politics last year.
"After giving evidence today, you watch what happens overnight, I'll cop it."
The former Monaro MP gave evidence that the videos made him the target of an "online army of hate" and left him hesitant to leave the house after a series of "intimidating" encounters.
He said members of the public who had viewed the videos would confront him aggressively, flashing FriendlyJordies merchandise which mocked him and calling him a "corrupt piece of s**t."
He described one encounter at the Apple store in Bondi, which took place while he was with his youngest daughter.
"The guy was very aggressive and confrontational. My daughter, who was five or six, held onto my leg.
"That was when I knew this is beyond me being stalked or attacked."
Google initially intended to argue that the videos were honest opinion and in the public interest but yesterday afternoon notified Mr Barilaro that they would no longer be relying on any defences throughout the trial.
The company has effectively accepted it defamed Mr Barilaro but has refused to apologise.
Mr Barilaro told the court that the fact they had maintained defences for seven months and then suddenly dropped them without explanation was a "deliberate approach" to run him into financial ruin.
"I'm broken, you've heard me in tears on the phone over this," Mr Barilaro told his lawyer, Sue Chrysanthou SC during questioning.
He revealed numerous colleagues had advised him not to take legal action over the videos, including former Premier Gladys Berejiklian.
"The Premier said 'Just leave it alone'. She didn't want me to take on FriendlyJordies," he said.
"Maybe that was advice I should have taken."
The former leader of the NSW Nationals said the refusal of Google to take the videos down led to significant family tensions, with some of his relatives blaming him for entering politics.
The 'Bruz' video was filmed in a farmhouse owned by the Barilaros, which his ex-wife had unwittingly rented out to Mr Shanks through AirBnB.
In the video, the YouTuber placed toys depicting the Nintendo character Mario throughout the house, including in one of the beds.
"Waking up with Mario in the bed – that's a scene from 'The Godfather'," Mr Barilaro told the court.
"If Google can't see these videos for what they are, then there's something bloody wrong with corporate Australia or corporate America.
"They are meant to be a responsible corporate citizen and they are not."
Yesterday, Ms Chrysanthou told the court Google had clearly breached its own community guidelines around hate speech and harassment of people on the basis of race.
She said this was an aggravating circumstance and urged Justice Steven Rares to award Mr Barilaro damages at the "top of the range".
