New Zealand Court Grants Kim Dotcom's Request To Have Extradition Hearing Livestreamed On YouTube, Despite DOJ Protests

The Kim Dotcom extradition appeal is now under way, with the first question being whether or not the courtroom drama could be livestreamed on the internet for a global public to watch. The request was originally made by Kim Dotcom and his lawyers, but the lawyers for the US government opposed... because... well, just because.

"US defends mass surveillance programs with 'If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear' but opposes live streaming of my hearing," Dotcom, who attended some of the hearing, said on Twitter.

Honestly, it's not at all clear why the government lawyers are opposing this other than to just oppose stuff and be generally obstructionist. However, it doesn't appear to have worked. A little while ago, Dotcom's lawyer Ira Rothken announced that the court had agreed to allow live streaming:

The Court granted Livestreaming today in the @KimDotcom case this is a victory for transparent justice in NZ - on YouTube soon live

- Ira Rothken (@rothken) August 29, 2016

And Kim Dotcom himself tweeted that it would begin tomorrow, once a cameraman was set up:

Live stream will start tomorrow. The cameraman needs to set this up professionally and implement the Judges live streaming rules. #winning

- Kim Dotcom (@KimDotcom) August 29, 2016

This should be an interesting hearing to watch no matter what. If you want a preview of some of the points, check out our podcast interview with Dotcom's lawyer, Ira Rothken from last week.

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