Google, Craigslist and Other Web Brands Take a Stance on SOPA

Posted by Shirley Brady on January 17, 2012 10:11 PM

Wikipedia is going offline on Jan. 18th as part of the mass online protest against SOPA: The Stop Online Piracy Act. As the site explains:

The blackout is a protest against proposed legislation in the United States – the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) in the U.S. House of Representatives, and the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA) in the U.S. Senate – that, if passed, would seriously damage the free and open Internet, including Wikipedia. This will be the first time the English Wikipedia has ever staged a public protest of this nature, and it’s a decision that wasn’t lightly made.

Other websites going dark Wednesday in a SOPA strike action include Barry Diller's Ask.com, O'Reilly Media websites, Wordpress blogs, Craigslist, TwitPic, Reddit, and countless others. Google's U.S. site will link to its SOPA action page from its homepage, where its logo is blacked out, while Twitter CEO Dick Costolo is refusing to shut down. Anonymous, reportedly, is planning to hack Sony for supporting SOPA.

Update: Wikipedia's English-language site is blocked out with the image below and this message:

Imagine a World Without Free Knowledge - For over a decade, we have spent millions of hours building the largest encyclopedia in human history. Right now, the U.S. Congress is considering legislation that could fatally damage the free and open internet. For 24 hours, to raise awareness, we are blacking out Wikipedia. Learn more.

More about: SOPA, PIPA, Online, Privacy, Protests, Activism, Google, Anonymous, Sony, Logos

David says:

So will Craig's List, Wikipedia and others work with congress to find better ways to protect ip generators like writers, performers, visual artists, etc? No. When I skimmed the bill I recognized it as a thought in progress & not a bill that could make it to the presidents desk. It is my hope that the issue of piracy and copyright infringement will elevate in the online consciousness. What a great change that would be.

January 18, 2012 06:31 PM #