Now that you mention it, has ONA taken an official stand on this bill? Update: “We’re taking a close look at the bill and we’re working on a briefing paper,” ONA responded to me on Twitter.

via onaissues:

Right now the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) is being debating in a mark-up session in the House Judiciary Committee. (You can catch a livestream here.)

Elizabeth Flock reports on how journalists are jumping into the debate:

“First came the critiques of civil liberties and human rights groups. Then came the slams from Internet engineers and Web giants, including Facebook, Twitter, and Google. Wednesday, the American Society of News Editors (ASNE) piled on by sending Congress a letter to ask that it stop the bill. ASNE represents newspaper editors, editors of wire services and online-only news organizations, and other journalists.” 

Not sure what SOPA is all about or how it affects you? Here are some links to help guide you through the bill:

The Act itself, as currently written 

The Senate version (called PIPA) 

An alternative to SOPA by Rep. Darrel Issa (R-Calif.) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.)

“The Latest from the SOPA Soap Opera” 

“Lines Drawn on Antipiracy Bills” 

“SOPA: Washington vs The Web”

With the bill in flux, we’ll be keeping an eye on any changes and the progress of the bill. As always, feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments, reblog with your thoughts or send us ideas by submitting to the ONA issues blog.