Auckland U must have some crazy rules for firing teachers, if a professor of a course can be fired just for being rude to a student.
Anyway, this really isnt news. There are rude people and jerks on every campus in the world. Most accredited universities in modern countries also have guidelines for dealing with situations like this that do not leave it up to the teacher's discretion. And the guy acknowledged that when he said that he would pass her if she showed proof that her father had really died. She should have just done that, written him a nasty email in response, and lodged a formal complaint.
I should add that going off and crying to the media when some professor bothers you is a very American thing to do. When jews at some UC school didnt like some event that muslims were putting on, they ran to the media. When a biology professor at Texas refused to give medical school recommendations to students who didnt believe in Evolution, they made a fuss about it in the media. Lately, Bill O'reilly has been parading one student after another from colleges and even high schools who whine about how their liberal professors are persecuting them and/or their ideas. Same has been done by liberal students. Same has been done by students unhappy about classes or events that cover safe sex, abstinence-only, drug use, homosexuality, anti-homosexuality, islam, etc etc. Personal gripes that individuals have with their teachers get taken to newspapers or other outlets who use them within some political or cultural context, instead of (or along with) the ombud or whoever is supposed to deal with student complaints at the university. Clearly our culture has penetrated far and wide.
ws