Wikipedia Goes Black In Protest Against SOPA
The protest against SOPA is picking up pace and this morning Wikipedia, as promised, has gone black and put up a notice warning about the possible effects on the internet if the new laws come into place. Find out more about Wikipedia’s view on SOPA here.
The new laws will effect the majority of websites and it has scared even the big names. Google has been very open about its protest against SOPA and has been campaigning to spread the word about it.
SOPA, or ‘Stop Online Piracy Act’ at first glance can seem like a good idea in principle. Copyright infringement happens frequently on the web, so the fact that the US are trying to think of ways to prevent it does seem like a good move.
However, what people are concerned about is how broadly written the SOPA is. It could encompass far too many areas of the internet, making harmless acts a criminal act. People are concerned that it will mean the end of free speech and the way that news, photographs, etc are spread on the internet to reach the public.
An article on Mashable.com gives a link to the full SOPA text for your reading. It also breaks down the areas that people are so concerned about. It explains why SOPA is seen as such a bad move for the internet.
Wikipedia aren’t the only ones – a code has been given out to the public so that anyone who owns a website can change their website black for today. This global online protest is a way to reach out to the public and raise awareness of this important issue.
Wikipedia’s English site will be dark for 24 hours today.
Between the hours of 8AM EST and 8PM EST, Mozilla, Reddit and Google will also be joining. Reddit will not be offering its regular services between these hours and will post up a message about its views on SOPA, with links for more information. Mozilla is set to redirect vitiors to its website to a ‘action page’ inviting users of its software to voice their concern about SOPA too. The Firefox landing page will also be altered to raise awareness of SOPA. Google’s search homepage will show a blacked-out the Google logo, including a link for more information.
Although this is an issue in the US, it certainly has an affect on the rest of the world. Take a look through the links and have a read through the proposals in SOPA.
A strong comment on the SOPA Strike website states, “We need to kill the bill – PIPA in the Senate and SOPA in the House – to protect our rights to free speech, privacy, and prosperity.” You can visit the offical SOPA Strike website here – sopastrike.com
