A fifty-three year-old grandmother was jailed for contempt of court last month after she failed to turn her computer over to US authorities.

The ageing blogger had written an unflattering post about the late Anna Nicole Smith, and the former playboy model's family decided to sue for defamation.

The woman is one of about twelve-million North American adults now blogging on a regular basis.

More than half of them write using a pseudonym.

Blogging anonymously makes sense in media-sensitive countries like China and Zimbabwe, but what are the possible legal implications for Australians who defame people on the net?

2SER’s Alex McDonald filed this report.