Internet Defense League
The Internet Defense League is a website that was launched in March 2012 with the aim of organizing future online protests of anti-piracy legislation, following the success of the anti-SOPA and PIPA protests.
 | |
Type of site | Political activism |
|---|---|
| Available in | English |
| Owner | Fight For the Future |
| URL | internetdefenseleague |
| Alexa rank | 250,583 (as of January 2013)[1] |
| Commercial | No |
| Registration | none |
| Launched | 8 March 2012 |
| Current status | online |
History
The Internet Defense League site is a creation of the Fight for the Future nonprofit, a group noted for its participation in the anti-SOPA protests of 2011,[2] and Alexis Ohanian, founder of Reddit.[3]
Website
According to Tiffiniy Cheng, co-founder of Fight for the Future, the aim of the Defense League site is to sign up thousands of websites, from giant organizations to individual bloggers, who can be mobilized quickly if needed for future anti-piracy legislation protests. They will use a "cat signal", a takeoff on the Bat signal, if there is need to act. "There's this academic theory ... that talks about if you ban the ability of people to share cat photos, they'll start protesting en masse", Cheng explains to CNN as to why they chose a symbol of a cat.[4]
Reception
As of May 2012, several notable organizations have signed on to the protest network, including Mozilla, Reddit, WordPress, and the Cheezburger Network.[5]
See also
- SOPA opposition
- Cute cat theory of digital activism
References
- "Alexa ranking". Alexa Internet. Retrieved 4 July 2012.
- Netburn, Deborah (26 May 2012). "Internet Defense League introduces 'cat signal' for websites". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- Greenberg, Andy (25 May 2012). "Reddit's Alexis Ohanian And Activists Aim To Build A 'Bat-Signal For The Internet'". Forbes. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- Sutter, John D. (29 May 2012). "A 'bat signal' to defend the open Internet". CNN. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- IDL website