What are SOPA and PIPA? What can I do?

I’m sure you’ve either heard or realized that websites like Wikipedia, Reddit, WordPress, TwitPic, and Fark are all protesting SOPA and PIPA by blacking out their site. What are SOPA and PIPA? They are the bills going through the U.S. House and Senate designed to prevent internet piracy, but they could also potentially change the internet as we now know it: not only potentially killing many sites, but also potentially weakening the underlying structure of the internet.

Want to learn more about SOPA and PIPA? Here’s a quick video summary:

PROTECT IP / SOPA Breaks The Internet from Fight for the Future on Vimeo.

If you would prefer to read instead of watch, check out Gizmodo’s summary or John Scalzi’s commentary.

The White House has come out against SOPA and PIPA, as have many leaders in the tech industry, venture capitalists, and even people who built the internet. But the bills could still pass. So what can you do? Learn which Members of Congress and the Senate are for and against SOPA and PIPA. Go here and here to get the contact information of your elected officials. E-mail them. Call them. Fax them. If you’re in DC, stop by their office. Let them know what you think. Be heard.

PREVENT PIRACY. PROTECT LIBERTY.