You may have noticed that a number of websites across the Internet today have modified their look a bit. In many cases, the normal content of that site is unreachable. Why would they do such a thing, you may ask? Well, there are two proposed laws, SOPA and PIPA, that threaten what we, today, enjoy as the Internet. The short version of these laws is that, basically, if you’re found to have any material on your website that infringes copyright, you face having your website shut down, without due process, all of your advertising pulled, being stricken from search engines, and possible jail time. Pretty draconian. There are a number of places that can explain, in more detail, what the full text of the legislation says. If you’re interested, check out americancensorship.org or eff.org.
Or, you can check out this video, from ted.com, that explains the legislation and why it’s so bad.
If you’re coming here after the 18th of January, here are some images of the protesting.
