Wikipedia has taken its English-language site offline as part of protests against proposed anti-piracy laws in the US.
Users attempting to access the site see a black screen and a political statement: “Imagine a world without free knowledge.”
The user-generated news site Reddit and the blog Boing Boing are also taking part in the “blackout”.
However, Twitter has declined to join the shutdown.
Wikipedia, which attracts millions of hits every day, is opposed to the US Stop Online Piracy Act (Sopa) and Protect Intellectual Property Act (Pipa) being debated by Congress.
