Blackout your WordPress.com blog to support STOP SOPA
UPDATE! January 16, 2012:
SOPA has been “shelved” indefinitely, but PIPA is still a problem, and the blackout WILL continue!
So, you want to blackout your WordPress.com blog in support of STOP SOPA day on January 18, 2012?
It’s actually pretty easy.
Go to your Dashboard. On the Sidebar find APPEARANCE > WIDGETS.
Create a new Text Widget with this inside (make sure to save it):
<div align="center" style="position:fixed;width:100%;height:100%; top:0;right:0;background-color:#3D0707;-moz-opacity:0.9;opacity:.90; filter:alpha(opacity=90);text-align:center;font-size:700%; font-weight:bold;padding-top:300px;"> <span style="color:#fff;">Stop SOPA/PIPA </span> <a style="font-size:20%;color:#fff;" href="https://www.eff.org/#censored" target="_blank">https://www.eff.org/</a></div>
This is what it will look like *code changed slightly to include PIPA; screenshot does not reflect this change*:
Your blog will then be inaccessible to visitors. However, the link on the blackout screen is clickable and will open in a separate window, so your visitors will be able to get information about what SOPA is, and how they can help stop it.
If any part of this tutorial is too confusing, or it just doesn’t work right for you, please feel free to comment and I’ll do what I can to help you get it working. Except on January 18, 2012. 
For more help with this topic, try the WordPress forums: http://en.forums.wordpress.com/topic/how-best-to-go-dark-for-sopa-protest?replies=55
For help with other ways to participate:
http://www.dailydot.com/politics/how-to-protest-sopa-/
Thanks Shelli. I’ll be doing this. If SOPA or PIPA passes, they’ll be able to shut down bloggers like wildfire.
Hey Moose! Great to see you again!
It sucks what they can do with SOPA. I don’t think people realize just how dangerous this thing is, and how it will affect everyone who uses the internet for anything.
Thanks for this post. Definitely cleared up all the confusion from the forum posting!
You are very welcome! I hope everything worked for you.
I’m updating mine to include PIPA, as there’s been an update to the story/protest.
It totally works.
I was going to tweak the code to do the same thing! Ha!
Thanks for script. But may be url should be this http://www.sopastrike.com/strike/ instead of eff.org?
I had to make a decision for myself, and at the time, the EFF had the information that I wanted to display (it actually goes to their “censored” page). But you can tweak the code to change it to whatever you’d like. Let me know if you have any problems with it that I can help with.
This isn’t time sensitive correct? I have to add the widget on the 18th then remember to take it off on the 19th? Sorry for the dumb question.
Yes, that is correct. No question is a dumb question.
Thank you for providing the information. I am not so savvy with all of these codes as are a few other bloggers that with whom I am familiar. The info you provided proved an asset for many.
You are quite welcome. I’m so glad I could help!