Wikipedia, other websites go dark in anti-piracy bill protest - CNN (blog)

Wikipedia was one of several websites to shut down at midnight in protest of anti-piracy bills that critics say could amount to censorship

Instead of the usual encyclopedia articles, visitors to Wikipedia were greeted by a message about the decision to black out its English-language Web page for an entire day.

"Imagine a World Without Free Knowledge," a stark message in white letters on a black and gray background read.

"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."

The protest is in response to the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) bill, a piece of proposed legislation that is working its way through the Congress. A similar bill called the Protect IP Act (PIPA) was approved by a Senate committee in May and is now pending before the full Senate.

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