Add the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times to the growing list of publications that oppose SOPA/PIPA. In two opinion pieces, both papers came out against the legislation through an official editorial (as opposed to the stance of just one columnist).
The New York Times official editorial, published Nov. 26th, 2011, noted that piracy is indeed a problem, but SOPA/PIPA are an overreach by the House of Representatives and Senate. The NYT finds that the legislation's language is too broad, might "stymie legitimate speech", and could send mixed messages to autocratic regimes like China. The NYT goes on to say that the legislation should be "tightened" by clarifying that its provisions are "aimed only at rogue Web sites overseas" rather than domestic websites.
The Los Angeles Times official editorial, published Nov. 25th, echoes most of the NYT's points. In addition, the LA Times piece finds that the two "bills go to risky extremes" that could "force . . . companies to monitor everything their users do, turning them into a private security force for copyright and trademark owners." The LA Times goes on to note that any site that allows users to upload information could be liable, in effect discouraging companies from trying to create the next YouTube and possibly have a chilling effect on speech.
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