X

Blackout! SOPA protests hit the Web (images)

High-profile Internet companies and organizations including Google, Wikipedia, and the EFF bring down a veil of darkness to underscore their worries about the controversial legislation.

Jon Skillings
Jon Skillings is an editorial director at CNET, where he's worked since 2000. A born browser of dictionaries, he honed his language skills as a US Army linguist (Polish and German) before diving into editing for tech publications -- including at PC Week and the IDG News Service -- back when the web was just getting under way, and even a little before. For CNET, he's written on topics from GPS, AI and 5G to James Bond, aircraft, astronauts, brass instruments and music streaming services.
Jon Skillings
GoogleBlackout02.jpg
1 of 15 Screenshot by Jonathan Skillings/CNET

Google, blacked out

Harsh criticisms of the Stop Online Piracy Act by Internet companies and organizations turned to a form of direct action today, with high-profile Web sites blacking out portions of--or, in the case of Wikipedia--entire pages. The goal is to underline the message from those companies that SOPA poses a very real threat of Web censorship. (For more details on the pending legislation, see "How SOPA would affect you: FAQ.")

Google's home page, for instance, this morning features a big, black block over the colorful "Google" logo that dominates the page, and a stark message under the search window urges: "Tell Congress: Please don't censor the web!" Both the blacked-out logo and the "Tell Congress" line linked out to a page entitled "End Piracy, Not Liberty" with an option for users to sign a petition to Congress.
wikiblack.png
2 of 15 Screenshot by CNET

Wikipedia goes dark

Wikipedia's English-language pages went completely black at 9 p.m. PT last night, with a splash page saying "the U.S. Congress is considering legislation that could fatally damage the free and open Internet." The online encyclopedia's blackout, intended to precede next week's Senate floor vote on the legislation, is scheduled to last 24 hours.
EFF_SOPA.JPG
3 of 15 Screenshot by Jonathan Skillings/CNET

EFF says 'stop censorship'

The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a prominent advocacy group, covers its logo with the message "stop censorship." It, too, urges Web users to take the anti-SOPA fight to Congress.
AmazonSOPA.JPG
4 of 15 Screenshot by Jonathan Skillings/CNET

Amazon lets it flow

Amazon.com remains open for business, but if you glance to the right side of the page while you're shopping, you can follow a link to NetCoalition.com. That coalition, which includes Amazon, Google, Yahoo, eBay, IAC, Bloomberg, Expedia, and Wikipedia, "seeks to preserve the vitality of the Internet that exists today--an open and consumer-oriented competitive environment--which inspires global innovation and trade."
Flickr_SOPA_02.JPG
5 of 15 Screenshot by Jonathan Skillings/CNET

The 'heart's dark desire'

The photo-sharing site Flickr is offering a do-it-yourself spin on the blackout. Users can darken their own photos--or other folks'--"for a 24-hour period to deprive the web of the rich content that makes it thrive." Initially, Flickr set a 10-photo limit, then changed that to an unlimited number of photos.
Wired_SOPA.JPG
6 of 15 Screenshot by Jonathan Skillings/CNET

Black blocks

Reflecting its origins in a print publication, Wired.com shows off its layout chops with a dramatic look reminiscent of a document done in by heavy-handed censors.
Metafilter_SOPA.JPG
7 of 15 Screenshot by Jonathan Skillings/CNET

MetaFilter's anti-SOPA splash

MetaFilter greets visitors with this splash page targeting SOPA as "misguided legislation."
CEA_SOPA.JPG
8 of 15 Screenshot by Jonathan Skillings/CNET

Stand up for innovation

The Consumer Electronics Association, like Wikipedia, is under a self-imposed 24-hour blackout--aside from this message.
Tor_SOPA.JPG
9 of 15 Screenshot by Jonathan Skillings/CNET

Layers of irony

The Tor Project boils the message down to two words: stop censorship. When it comes to SOPA and Tor, there's no small about of irony. The Tor software was created by the U.S. government, and the nonprofit Tor Project is funded in part by federal agencies that hope that it will let Internet users in repressive regimes bypass their country's informational blockades. SOPA could make it illegal to distribute Tor and similar software that might let users circumvent attempts by the U.S. government to block pirate Web sites.
Wordpress_SOPA.JPG
10 of 15 Screenshot by Jonathan Skillings/CNET

Learn more

WordPress.org, the group behind the widely used blogging tool, calls out the Protect IP Act as well as its sister bill, SOPA, and offers a video on the legislation and its potential effects.
Cheezburger_SOPA.JPG
11 of 15 Screenshot by Jonathan Skillings/CNET

Cheezburger needs help

The name is comical and the site high on hijinks, but when it comes to SOPA, I Can Has Cheezburger gets serious.
Reddit_SOPA.JPG
12 of 15 Screenshot by Jonathan Skillings/CNET

'Today we fight back'

Reddit's self-imposed blackout is running 12 hours instead of 24, but strikes the same strong tone about fighting back.
Boing_Boing_SOPA_02.jpg
13 of 15 Screenshot by Jonathan Skillings/CNET

Boing Boing goes black

The Web site Boing Boing normally has fun with what's out and about on the Internet. Not today.
OpenDNS_SOPA.JPG
14 of 15 Screenshot by Jonathan Skillings/CNET

Stop SOPA!

The Internet security and domain name services company OpenDNS unfurls a banner that proclaims "Stop Censorship! STOP SOPA!"
Craigslist_SOPA.JPG
15 of 15 Screenshot by Jonathan Skillings/CNET

Clammy hands

On Craigslist, it's the familiar anti-SOPA/PIPA message and exhortation to contact members of Congress. There's also a more vivid postscript: "corporate paymasters, KEEP THOSE CLAMMY HANDS OFF THE INTERNET!"

More Galleries

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera
A houseplant

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera

20 Photos
Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra
magic-v2-2024-foldable-1383

Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra

10 Photos
The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum
Samsung Galaxy S24

The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum

23 Photos
Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design
The Galaxy S24 Ultra in multiple colors

Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design

23 Photos
I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites
img-0368.jpg

I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites

34 Photos
17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About
Invitation for the Apple September iPhone 15 event

17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About

18 Photos
AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?
img-1599-2.jpg

AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?

17 Photos