Flickr SOPA Protest Lets You Black Out Photos
Flickr is joining today's protests of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and PROTECT IP Act (PIPA), but rather than blacking out the Yahoo-owned photo site, Flickr is allowing members to darken existing photos.
"Flickr is letting members darken their photos — or the photos of others—for a 24-hour period to deprive the web of the rich content that makes it thrive," the company said in a blog post.
On Twitter, some users were puzzled by the choice, arguing that allowing users to blacken out photos was itself a form of censorship. But Flickr said "your symbolic act will help draw attention to this issue and let others know about the potential harmful impacts of these bills."
Flickr photos will include a blue "Darken this photo" button, but before you go crazy blacking out every photo on the site, Flickr will only allow you to darken 10 photos before the option disappears.
If you come across a photo that has been darkened, Flickr will display a message about SOPA/PIPA and a link to its blog post. Flickr admitted, however, that the option is "merely a symbolic gesture." Darkened photos will also include a "Show the photo anyway" option, which removes the blackout, as well as an "opt-out my photos," which will let photo owners ban others from darkening their pics.
Flickr linked to NetCoalition.com for more information about SOPA and PIPA, an organization that counts Google, Amazon, eBay, PayPal, and Yahoo among its members.
For more, see the Top 5 Objections to SOPA, PIPA and Who's Going Dark to Protest SOPA, PIPA? Also check out PCMag analysts' take on the bills, as well as the slideshow below, which features screen shots from Web sites that are participating in today's blackout.
For more from Chloe, follow her on Twitter @ChloeAlbanesius.
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