Talk:Anderson Cooper

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article must adhere to the policy on biographies of living persons. Controversial material of any kind that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous. If such material is repeatedly inserted or there are other concerns relative to this policy, report it on the living persons biographies noticeboard.

	This article is within the scope of WikiProject Biography. For more information, visit the project page.	Biography Portal
B	This article has been rated as B-Class on the Project's quality scale. [FAQ] (If you rated the article, please give a short summary at comments to explain the ratings and/or to identify the strengths and weaknesses.)
	This article is supported by the Arts and Entertainment work group.

This is the talk page for discussing improvements to the Anderson Cooper article.
Please sign and date your posts using four tildes (~~~~). New discussion topics go at the bottom of the page; click here to start a new topic. New to Wikipedia? Welcome! Frequently asked questions. This is not a forum for general discussion about the article's subject.	Talk page guidelines Be polite Assume good faith No personal attacks Don't bite the newcomers!

Contents 1 Photo 2 Skull and Bones membership 3 Dogs 4 Religious beliefs 5 Journalist style 6 Fansites 7 Discussion of sexuality 8 Ethnicity 9 I'll remove the sexual orientation thing 10 Trivia 11 Channel 1 12 Born in... 13 Popularity 14 Former Child Fashion Model 15 Sago 16 Criticisms 17 Older son? 18 World News Now 19 Unsourced 20 Sexual orientation 21 Vandalism

[edit] Photo

It's be nice if we had a photograph of Anderson here. Would a screen cap from his tv show be considered legit? What would this be, fair use, public domain or other? --Sketchee 20:00, Jan 24, 2005 (UTC)

I basically mean in the Public, because a lot of people at my school and in my family do find his show boring and not appealing anymore. So, I was wondering did his popularity drop across the board?

[edit] Skull and Bones membership

Does anyone know if he was in Skull and Bones?

Anderson has said in interviews that he was not in Skull and Bones. That he was a "loser" in college and locked himself in his dorm most of the time.

[edit] Dogs

I've found references online to Molly, Ozzie and both. Could it be that he had Ozzie first, got Molly and then Ozzie passed away? If anyone knows more about his dog(s) please post here. -- Limulus 04:46, 14 October 2005 (UTC)

I've heard Ozzie had to be put down a couple of years ago and that's about the time he got Molly.

[edit] Religious beliefs

Has anyone seen/heard anything about Cooper's theological beliefs? It just struck me that I haven't run across mention of religion in any of the articles I've read about him. -- Limulus 05:34, 5 November 2005 (UTC)

His father, Wyatt Cooper, was raised Southern Baptist. His mother, Gloria Vanderbilt, was raised Catholic. I've heard Anderson is Episcopalian - no confirmation though. He does, however, collect crucifixes.

I've seen him say "god bless you" or similar such things to people during the reporting of Katrina/Rita. I've never come across him discussing his religious beliefs in public, though. 65.186.79.160 01:23, 12 October 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Journalist style

Some think anderson is a bit of a sensationalist

[edit] Fansites

On 15:38, 2 January 2006, William Graham removed the Fansites subsection from External links for the reason that "Wikipedia is not a directory of fansites":

While I agree in principle, some of those might have interesting content worth linking to; should any of them go back in? -- Limulus 11:32, 3 January 2006 (UTC)

No. If they have any good content that should be summarized here. -Will Beback 19:10, 3 January 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Discussion of sexuality

New to Wiki http://www.gawker.com/news/media/anderson-cooper/anderson-cooper-always-super-always-sweet-always-sixteen-039825.php http://youcantmakeitup.blogspot.com/2005/04/anderson-cooper-gay-or-flaming.html It's about Anderson liking Super Sweet 16 and Walter Mercado. What do you think of that? And about the "we" vs "you" thing http://www.gawker.com/news/media//anderson-cooper-ignores-us-026614.php http://www.gawker.com/news/media/anderson-cooper/the-final-word-on-anderson-cooper-026720.php I think we can put that to rest.

-- —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 172.151.239.154 (talk • contribs) .

Why does everyone get so upset at the suggestion that someone might be gay? Is that defamation? I don't think so. It's an interesting aspect of his personal life, and sure to disappoint some ladies out there, but it's not bad. I don't know why people are getting so uppity about whether or not there is "conclusive proof," as if we're calling the man a murder just by discussing his sexual orientation. What kind of a puritanical society do we live in? And we wonder why the politicians in D.C. call the middle of the nation "fly over country."

Is he really gay? One of these edits is the first I have heard of his sexual orientation.

Cooper lives in New York City with his dog, Welsh Springer Spaniel, Molly. There are persistent rumors that he is gay.

-As the above user comments on Mr. Cooper's sexuality, I am not absolutely sure that the line about the "persistent rumors" is necessary for his wiki article. Now I am actually myself positive that he is indeed gay. When Mr. Cooper was actually living in Atlanta he came into a gay club and ordered a drink down the bar from me. He appeared to be waiting for someone. Wouldn’t stand up in court but that was enough given all else that is known about Cooper to convince me. That said, until if and when Mr. Cooper makes a statement on his sexuality could it be best to leave the matter aside?--Francis Burdett 20:47, 23 Jun 2005 (UTC)

Everyone in New York knows Anderson's gay. It's not a secret. 68.173.44.202 3 July 2005 06:56 (UTC)

Well it can't be in the article unless you have real proof (i.e. he actually admitted it). Just cause someone acts gay (and he doesn't really act like a stereotypically gay person) doesn't mean they really are gay. Xunflash 03:05, 16 July 2005 (UTC)

Cooper is gay. --ThomasK 06:28, August 11, 2005 (UTC)

From Category:Gay, lesbian or bisexual people, "This category is a partial listing of notable gay, lesbian and bisexual people who have publicly declared their sexual orientation, or whose sexual orientation is known and not debated by historians." I don't really think that Anderson Cooper fits this definition and I think that the categorization should be removed from this article. Whether or not he is gay, he has not publicly declared his sexual orientation, and it seems to be a matter of some debate. --timc | Talk 17:43, 29 August 2005 (UTC)

Yeah, even though it is obvious to those who really care, he hasn't come out and declared his sexual orientation. I really think it should be removed from the article. --waffle iron 23:59, 3 September 2005 (UTC)

This is suppose to be an encyclopedia. It doesn't matter how many people in Anderson Cooper's neighbourhood "know" that he's gay. The fact that he's gay should only be added to the article if there is conclusive proof, verifiable by the reader. More importantly his sexual orientation should only be added if it is relevant to this article. There are thousands of biographical entries in Wikipedia where the subject's sexual orientaion is not mentioned. --65.94.43.50

While I do not know if he is gay or not, it is relevant to this entry because of the numerous discussions about his sexual orientation online (e.g. on BlogActive). To maintain a neutal POV, I have quoted from NY Magazine (see the fourth page) which gives quite a bit of background to the issue and quotes Cooper directly... he doesn't want to talk about his "personal life" ^_- But that non-answer in itself is something. I tried to tie it into the "Cooper has frequently been involved with gay and lesbian issues" section; sorry if the connection looks a bit clunky. -- Limulus 11:34, 17 September 2005 (UTC)

BTW, He's also mentioned in Wikipedia's list of Persons of debated lesbian, gay or bisexual orientation which states "The following list includes those who some people legitimately believe there is meaningful evidence the person is or was gay, lesbian or bisexual. This speculation should be supported by documentation or historical record. More information about what is known about each individual's sexuality should be available in the individual's biography." which is another reason that it should be in Cooper's bio. -- Limulus 12:17, 17 September 2005 (UTC)

The stuff about his proported sexuality has creeped back in. Should it stay? --waffle iron 04:10, 28 October 2005 (UTC)

No. We still don't have word from him. It's just speculation. At the most it deserves a short mention and possibly a link to the homosexual speculation page.

Are we to censor those who legitimately believe that Cooper is gay when the Wikipedia page I quoted from explicitly says that we should document their views? Plus I tried to balance it with the NY Magazine article which very much downplays it... Honestly, all that it would take for me to move the gay speculation section into triva while feeling academically honest would be for Cooper to say three words: "I'm not gay." That would trump all the speculation. But given the chance to, he said "I just don’t talk about my personal life." Well, the thing is that others are talking about his personal life (e.g. blogACTIVE). The comments are available for anyone to see if they do a quick google search; I really think this should be kept (though I am obviously a tad biased since I put it back ;). -- Limulus 20:51, 28 October 2005 (UTC)

Exactly. If Andy is straight, why does he dodge the question? That's what I don't understand. To say that "we still don't have a word from [Anderson Cooper]" (as stated two entries above mine) implies that Cooper has never been asked about this, which would, in turn, imply that the paragraph Limulus refers to ("I just don’t talk about my personal life.") is a fabrication. Personally I don't care if he's gay or not, I still watch his show. I mean, he pays taxes...

It just reads like tabloid fodder. Maybe if you clean it up a bit, the whole "many in the gay community..." comment in particular. What many? Who? Just random gays polled by the people at Gallup? And the "his handlers at CNN [are] known to call sites..." quote as well. I'd like to know where this was quoted from and have a direct link to the original document or at least reference it's source. And it's none of our business why he "dodges" the question. It's his life; let him live it. Until he says "I'm queer and here" from atop a broken levee, it is still just speculation. And poorly sourced speculation at that.

I accept your point regarding "many"; I'll tweak that in a moment. Please tell me what you think of the results. The "handlers at CNN" quote is directly from the blogACTIVE link. Perhaps I should get those two sentences to flow better. Him 'dodging the question' is now a matter of public record (via NY Metro article) and as such fair game. BTW, the main activity of blogACTIVE is to out gay Quislings, if you will. Given their results, if they say someone is gay, I trust that as fairly reliable ;) -- Limulus 09:32, 3 November 2005 (UTC)

# Here's another way to look at it: Presumably it doesn't really matter whether or not he's gay, and he's made it plain that he doesn't want the matter to be part of discussion about him. Therefore, we should pull this from the article until such time as it may become relevant. -- 03 November 2005

This is not the Anderson Cooper fanclub, this is his biographical entry on Wikipedia: the whole point is to give an accurate depiction of the life of the person in question. It is relevant because more than a few people have claimed that he is gay. -- Limulus 00:44, 4 November 2005 (UTC)

I would argue that because he's not self identifying as gay, it shouldn't be included. I could get a whole bunch of people to claim Wolf Blitzer is gay and you wouldn't add it there. --waffle iron 02:19, 4 November 2005 (UTC)

If several sources had made that claim, it would be relevant to Blitzer just as it is with Anderson. A search on the topic on Google News gives a pretty clear indication of that. If you did it, it would be original research. In the case of Anderson, we give who has said what about the topic including Andersons POV, note the verifiability of the claim and that's it. Wikipedia should present both sides and not favor either of course. NPOV doesn't mean "Anderson Cooper's POV about his own life" either. Just as politicians and other visible figures may not want to discuss allegations about their personal life, they still might be high profile claims and would then be included in their article --Sketchee 03:45, 4 November 2005 (UTC)

Personally I think he's probably gay, but what you're describing is gossip. I don't think that gossip and heresay has much place in an encyclopedia. --waffle iron 04:27, 4 November 2005 (UTC)

The thing is that its not just random people making comments here and there online, you also have reporters like Michael Musto writing articles for Out magazine and The Village Voice... Sure its not the mainstream press, but its not just gossip either. -- Limulus 13:42, 4 November 2005 (UTC)

You mean to say that Michael "Best Gossip Columnist in a poll conducted by nycsidewalk.com" Musto isn't a gossip writer? --waffle iron 20:19, 4 November 2005 (UTC)

Well, yes, he is for the most part (amusingly, he was interviewed by Anderson Cooper for "the buzz" at least twice: 1 2 ...does that mean AC considers him a reliable-enough source? ;), but that's not to say that Musto can't be or hasn't been quite serious when he wants to, e.g. "At the height of the first wave of AIDS, I wrote a column about the fear, anger, and grief gripping the gay community that I feel mirrored that moment pretty articulately." The Cooper article he wrote was (based on the summaries I've read) not so much an outing of AC (Musto considers Cooper's sexuality an "open-secret") as an examination of why the mainstream press had tip-toed around his sexuality in various interviews up to that point (I think the NY Metro article was the first to speak about it in any meaningful way). Now, the curious thing is that I read that the Daily News' gossip collumnist Ben Widdicombe actually spoke with AC about the article: "I asked Cooper if he had been contacted about the story, which comes out next week. "No," he said, digging his hands into his pockets and looking at his shoes. [note: Musto said "I asked CNN for a comment from Anderson and/or themselves. They apparently didn't even forward it to him, they just responded by sending me a blanket no comment."] Any response to it? "No."" Again, a chance for AC to tell the world that its complete fiction... And again, we get a 'no comment'. This is exactly why we need the discussion section in Cooper's bio. -- Limulus 00:39, 5 November 2005 (UTC)

That's really far from diffinative. It all seems too tin foil hat to me. I'd like to hear someone else's opinion on this. I don't think I'm out of bounds. --waffle iron 00:42, 5 November 2005 (UTC)

If we knew for sure it wouldn't be a "discussion", would it? And you know who's opinion I'd really like to hear on this? Anderson Cooper's ;) But since he's not saying, who else would you like to hear from? This isn't "tin foil hat", this is asking if a notable TV personality is gay (not the first time :) How can the contemplation of Cooper being gay be "tin foil hat" when George Takei just came out?!? So unless you happen to know Cooper's sexuality for a fact, please do not discount the possibility. -- Limulus 01:03, 5 November 2005 (UTC)

Oh I'm fairly certain he is, but I'm not sure if it can be sourced correctly. At this point I don't think it's worth all the energy I spent debating it. I'm fine with it staying I guess. --waffle iron 04:00, 5 November 2005 (UTC)

I think basically the section should boil down to two main points: (1) there are people who claim 'Cooper is gay' and (2) when asked directly, Cooper says 'no comment'. We can't say any more (due to lack of facts) but we shouldn't say any less (because those two things are well established). Of course, if you think that my presentation of those facts could use improvement, by all means, PLEASE suggest/make changes) -- Limulus 05:08, 5 November 2005 (UTC)

Hey wait a sec! Doesn't "Best Gossip Columnist" imply that he was usually right? -- Limulus 01:03, 5 November 2005 (UTC)

Yeah, but we are discriminating agasint homosexual gossip? I mean, I've heard tell that Colin Farrell is straight. At what point does his sexuality become a stipulated fact. And anyway, Anderson Cooper? Totally gay. Which is just too damn bad for us females. As for self-identifying, he doesn't wear the rainbow flag across his chest, but he's also never declared his heterosexuality or been seen squiring around ANY of NYC's myriad hot chicks in an would-be romantic capacity. In any case, CNN is the only party in this debate trying to genuinely keep him in the closet. jengod 08:26, 4 November 2005 (UTC)

Maybe now I should go edit Tom Brokaw's page and insert a sub-topic concerning his heterosexuality.

Actually, there is already a comment to that effect ^_- "He has been married to Meredith Lynn Auld (a former Miss South Dakota and author) since 1962." That sounds pretty hetero to me, but feel free to flesh it out ;) -- Limulus 13:42, 4 November 2005 (UTC)

Speaking of gossip, this and this are the sorts of things that I would consider far too gossipy to use and yet they're quite amusing ;) -- Limulus 13:42, 4 November 2005 (UTC)

Heh, if there was something notable about the heterosexuality of a person I think it would definitely be noted in their article. I don't think it's "gossip" at all. Sections in my old school textbooks on Maurice Ravel (reportedly straight) and Tchaikovsky (reportedly gay) make note of the reports of the sexual preference of these individuals. These are general music history books. We make note that George Gershwin had a affair with Kay Swift. Encyclopedia and short bios often take note of these private affairs. Any good encyclopedia biography tries to give an overview not only of the persons professional life, but other events that shaped their lives, criticisms, media reports (that are sometimes false or disputed). These things aren't trivial (or trivia); it gives us a well rounded and NPOV perspective to include various sides. =) --Sketchee 08:36, 5 November 2005 (UTC)

References to "Trivia" in the menus of both the article and the talk page have been changed (I called them "trivia" before not to trivialize them, but in that they would be the kind of odd things to know to win in Trivial Pursuit ;) In the main article I changed the name to "Facts & Factoids" and moved the discussion of sexuality section in there... its up to the reader to determine if the talk about Cooper being gay is a Fact or a Factoid (as if that will make everyone happy... also note the clever CNN reference in using "Factoid" ;-) -- Limulus 10:29, 5 November 2005 (UTC)

It just doesn't seem right for some reason. Something about the presentation. I'll think about it.

What's the BFD? I'm straight and a Christian. My wife and I watch Anderson Cooper almost every night. Why? Because he's a good reporter and he's not afraid to ask tough questions! If he wants to keep his sexuality private, why not let him? What would his being gay or straight have to do with his journalistic abilities? I'm a heavy metal musician and it doesn't lessen my admiration for their abilities one bit that Rob Halford of Judas Priest is gay or that the late Freddie Mercury was bisexual. What they do/did in their bedrooms is not my business...same with Anderson Cooper.--MarshallStack 04:17, 23 May 2006 (UTC)

He must be gay if he cant answer the question. I dont think its a big deal but people make it a big deal in shying away from answering the question. Most straight people have no issues with saying they are straight, its as easy as pie whether they are your next door neighbour or famous news anchors. Its the non straight folks that are challenged with stating their preferences. Hes probably gay... but it shouldn't matter anyway and really non of us should care.

As a public personality, many people are interested in sexual orientation, not to invade privacy. A professional astrologer did calculate his chart and rectify his rising sign and he definitely has a higher than normal sex drive, and if he was born in the morning between 8 AM and 11:30 AM, he definetly has planetary position of homosexuality that has been common in most gay celebrities' charts. However, it is not a planetary placement for a gay lover, but rather the type of gay man who likes gay sex for a psychological release or lust, etc. to say it discreetly, With Leo rising, Sun in 10th house of Public, and the North Node riding the crest of his medio coili, fame and public career are evident. But all of this is subject to correction of birth information and calculation of his fixed star placements, asteroids and black holes.

Actually, Anderson was born between 3:00pm and 3:30pm.

This entry is solely based on controversial material and it is unsourced or poorly sourced and must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous. Only when FACTS or official statement regarding this issue should be included. This entry will be reported to the board.

[edit] Ethnicity

• Cooper is the youngest son of writer Wyatt Emory Cooper and artist, designer and writer Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt. Although Cooper is of mostly English descent, he has fairly distant Dutch and Spanish ancestry.

Checking the bios that we have on his ancestor, I don't see any trace of English heritage. The Vanderbilts came to America in 1650. If a family has been in a country for a few generations, that becomes their nation. When was Cooper's last ancestor born in England? -Willmcw 00:28, 16 November 2005 (UTC)

It's mostly a process of narrowing down. His most distant (listed) ancestor is Cornelius Vanderbilt. The entry for him says he had some distant Dutch ancestry. None of the Vanderbilt's wives since Cornelius have even vaguely Dutch names (most are English) and one was even the daughter of a Presbyterian minister. Gloria Vanderbilt's entry says that she is of Spanish, Irish, English and Dutch descent. We know her Dutch is very distant, the Spanish part refers to her mother's maternal grandmother (thus Gloria would be 1/8th Spanish). I'm certain that Wyatt Cooper was of English descent as well. I'll add Irish to the article.Vulturell 00:37, 16 November 2005 (UTC)

So Cooper is 1/16th Spanish? Are you sure that's Spanish, not Chilean? According to this article, Gloria Laura Mercedes Morgan-Vanderbilt, the Spanish connection is very distant. How many generations are necessary before a person is no longer a hyphenated American? -Willmcw 01:06, 16 November 2005 (UTC)

Well, it's usually reported as "Spanish" and "Chilean" as if referring to two separate ethnic groups. But both are obviously referring to the same ancestor of Cooper's.

This is from the article on his maternal grandmother, Gloria Laura Mercedes Morgan-Vanderbilt "Gloria Morgan's maternal grandfather, Hugh Judson Kilpatrick (1836–1881), was a Union Army general during the American Civil War who also served as the U.S. minister to Chile where he met Gloria's grandmother, an aristocrat whose family are said to be descendants of Spain's royal house of Navarre." Obviously this Chilean grandmother of Morgan's was Spanish in ancestry; I didn't feel the need to mention Chilean for Anderson Cooper's ancestry, since Chilean is not really an ethnic background - it can refer to several things i.e. Native American/Spanish, just Spanish, etc. So he can be described as 1/16th Chilean or 1/16th Spanish - I just thought Spanish more accurately conveys it. To answer your question, it's not so much how many generations, but rather the exact ethnic makeup of a person - since no one is really American without some sort of a hyphen. The rules we usually use for these ethnic labels (i.e. English-American) is the person being at least 1/4 of whichever group. This limits the person to 4 groups. People like Val Kilmer or David Carradine, who have such mixed ancestries that they don't even have a "full" quarter of anything, are not listed under any groups.Vulturell 01:26, 16 November 2005 (UTC)

Do we have enough information to know that Cooper is even 1/4 English extraction? It sounds like a real mix. The Kingdom of Navarre ended in the 16th century, and was inhabited by Basques, so even calling that line "Spanish" is tenuous. Unless one of Cooper's four grandparents was born abroad, it seems safe to call him an un-hyphenated American. -Willmcw 01:32, 16 November 2005 (UTC)

Hmmm.. Well, I took out English-Americans and tweaked the note on his ancestry a bit. I might investigate further on Cooper later - it doesn't matter that much for now.Vulturell 01:36, 16 November 2005 (UTC)

Maybe we should create a new category- "American", or perhaps, "American-American". -Willmcw 01:51, 16 November 2005 (UTC)

"Ancestry Mixed to the point of Being Unlabelable, even by VultureLL-American"Vulturell 01:54, 16 November 2005 (UTC)

"LOL" is a cliche, but that really did make me laugh out loud. Thanks, -Willmcw 05:57, 16 November 2005 (UTC)

So does that mean you're creating that category, or should I? :)Vulturell 07:38, 16 November 2005 (UTC)

Go for it. For less thoroughbred lineages, categories like "Americans with ____ ancestry", though wordy, might help distinguish those who were born in the U.S. to an ethnic family versus those who themselves immigrated. So, Bob Hope would be one of the "English-Americans", Sean Hannity would be a one of "Americans with Irish ancestry", and Anderson Cooper would still be "Plain-old Americans" (comprising those whose most recent immigrant ancestor was a great-grandparent). Just a thought. Cheers, -Willmcw 07:59, 16 November 2005 (UTC)

BTW, I was not aware "LOL" had become a cliche - that is disturbing information. Your idea may certainly work for the specific and much-hated "English Americans", but I think it might create a lot of confusion among most categories. "Irish-American", for example, is commonly known to define specifically Americans of Irish descent, not Irish-born. I guess English-Americans is just one category I should refrain from using that often if I don't want to annoy people.Vulturell 08:05, 16 November 2005 (UTC)

[edit] I'll remove the sexual orientation thing

Because:

1) It's completely irrelevant regarding Anderson Cooper's work.

2) He DOES NOT like to talk about his personal life. Plus, his job is in journalism, not gaynalism or something. 209.124.124.219

Strong disagree. If we have to leave out biographical information because the subject "doesn't like to talk about it", half of George W. Bush's life would be shrouded in darkness. You could change "Sexual Orientation" to "Personal Life" a la Kevin Spacey, but removing the section entirely is uncalled for and unnecessary. --Aemilia 03:13, 25 July 2006 (UTC)

Disagree -- It's irrelevant to his professionalism, but an important factor in his life. And, he comes from a vast pedigree, but is unlikely to leave any descendants. So leave something in, link to appropriate sites, and move on. Next topic. (And if anyone asks, I'm a straight guy from a gay neighborhood, and have a cat, not a dog. Big deal.) ScottAdler 22:49, 23 May 2006 (UTC)

This isnt an article about his work, it is about him. also, whether or not he 'likes' facts or speculation is not relavant. also, sexuality isnt something must be declared before it is attributed. this is especially not the case with 'presumed' heterosexual persons, alive or dead.

Strong Agree: Unless he comes out personally and addresses the issue for his own reasons (either way) I don't see why this is in the article. It is 100% speculation and non encyclopedic. Are there is he or isn't he sections in every journalist's entry in Wiki? JMHO. KsprayDad 17:32, 19 June 2006 (UTC)

For an interesting perspective (and an uncommon one, coming from the media) on the relationship between NPOV reporting and respect for personal privacy, check out this op-ed. Might help out this discussion a bit. --207.38.190.34 02:38, 30 August 2006 (UTC)

He has commented on it publicly, if only to deflect any sexual identification. Ergo, it should be part of the article. It is part of his persona for an article, which includes not only his work but also his public image, detailed biography, etc. It should stay in the article, as written, which is non POV and merely stating the facts, with Cooper's comments also. We have included this in Prince Albert of Monaco's article, since he, too, has commented on the rumors publicly; why not here? Mowens35 13:00, 30 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Trivia

I'm concerned about the Trivia section for a few reasons:

1. Some of it (pets, doesn't drink hot beverages) seem very unencylopedic and worthy of a Fan Site, which Wikipedia is not.
2. Other information: modeling background, disease contracted in Africa could better be incorporated into the article itself if it can be verifed, rather than grouped together as "Trivia."
3. Much of it: Iron Chef America, Maxim, Esquire, Celebrity Jeopardy, could be grouped into a category called "Media appearances" and appropriately cited. Crunch 02:18, 17 January 2006 (UTC)

All trivia is considered unencylopaedic and ultimately all of these sections must go and if important be incorporated into the article per MOS. Doc 00:28, 10 July 2006 (UTC)

I changed the wording of the item about his height for reasons outlined at http://letmespellitoutforyou.blogspot.com/2006/08/why-i-hate-wikis.html Letmespellitoutforyou 14:52, 5 September 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Channel 1

Anyone remember when he was on Channel 1? I remember him crying on camera in Bosnia because he was afraid of getting shot. Wolf Blitzer wouldn't have cried.

Have you ever been in combat with bullets whizzing around you? Some of the most hardcase "grunts" break down and cry in those circumstances. Wolf Blitzer might have too. I'm thankful that when I was in the military it was during peacetime and I didn't have to take a bullet, because I know many who did.--MarshallStack 04:20, 23 May 2006 (UTC)

i guess many ppl would cry, but most of them are not shown in front of the camera

[edit] Born in...

I added that he was actually born in New York City, because I didn't think it was clearly stated where he was born - just where he is "based" and where he usually broadcasts he show. -Fairy Incognito 17:29, 19 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Popularity

It's be nice if we had a photograph of Anderson here. Would a screen cap from his tv show be considered legit? What would this be, fair use, public domain or other? --Sketchee 20:00, Jan 24, 2005 (UTC)

I basically mean in the Public, because a lot of people at my school and in my family do find his show boring and not appealing anymore. So, I was wondering did his popularity drop across the board?

[edit] Former Child Fashion Model

I too question the addition of 'former child fashion model' to Cooper's bio, and certainly in the first para. If you could point me to similar notables whose pre-teen careers as dogwalker, baby sitter, lawn mower or paper carrier is also highlighted in the first paragraph, I would be very interested to see it. The only exception should be those whose showbiz careers started as child actors or mouseketeers, for instance, or working models who began as child models.

I suggest its continuous re-inclusion in this page is the work of detractors (possibly even Aaron Brown) who feel Cooper is a journalistic lightweight and this is their way of making their not-so-subtle point.

Moved this to a more appropriate section. Doc 00:33, 10 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Sago

If would be nice if someone mentioned or wrote about his reporting during the Sago Mine Disaster and that if he dosent know something about a subject hes not afriad to ask questions and learn on air--24.23.82.233 03:32, 15 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Criticisms

An irked CNN viewer with a poor command of the English language seems to have added this biased section to the article. Can it be removed?

[edit] Older son?

Who keeps putting this back in? Cooper is Wyatt's younger and Gloria's youngest son. - Arthur, July 28

[edit] World News Now

Anybody know the exact months and years Cooper anchored ABC's overnight World News Now? And, with which co-anchors? Thanks. Thistheman 17:52, 14 August 2006 (UTC)

Not sure about exact dates, but he co-anchored with Alison Stewart and sometimes JuJu Philips.

[edit] Unsourced

Half the information in this article is unsourced POV and Original Research. -24.92.41.95 15:11, 5 September 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Sexual orientation

I was shocked to see that this entire section was removed, without further discussion that I've found. It was removed at 21:02, on 7 September 2006 by Worldnewsjunkie, without an edit summary, and it missed my notice and I am sure that of many others. The general consensus, as I read it on this page, is that an encyclopaedic discussion of the man should include a NPOV discussion of this part of his life as much as any other heterosexual, ambisexual or homosexual person. If you disagree, open the discussion here. Doc ♬ talk 08:25, 21 October 2006 (UTC)

The text has been removed routinely before, though I am surprised that we all missed this removal. I agree that biographies should cover biographical information, but this particualr material seems a bit speculative, even salacious. Since so little is known for sure, and since the article isn't very long, it'd be better if it were shorter and more matter-of-fact. Could we summarize the long quote? -Will Beback 09:05, 21 October 2006 (UTC)

Possibly, although that is the part that is solid. The first paragraph could, in my opinion be deleted if the needed citations are not forthcoming. We missed it because it was done without edit summary and as I went back to look for the deletion I even found a later edit summary referencing the section believing it was still there. Doc ♬ talk 09:15, 21 October 2006 (UTC)

Is there any verifiable information regarding his sexuality? everything I've seen is gossip. GeekLove 15:52, 21 October 2006 (UTC)

Given the policy on biographies of living persons (in particular the sections on reliable sources and presumption in favour of privacy), as well as the suggestion that "Unsourced or poorly sourced controversial (negative, positive, or just highly questionable) material about living persons should be removed immediately from Wikipedia articles, talk pages, and user pages", I'm inclined to say that this doesn't belong here. At most I think there could be mention that there are persistent rumours regarding Cooper's sexuality, and that he has declined to comment. Incidentally, while formatting the block qoutes and references for this section I discovered that the link to the reference material (which is also a source for a number of other quotes in this article) is no longer active.GeekLove 16:34, 21 October 2006 (UTC)

With regard to the first reference, it is properly cited with both date of the magazine and the date it was retrieved online so it still stands as a proper reference. Perhaps the link should be disabled, but it is still an appropriate source. With regard to the section the ongoing topic of public interest and discussion is well sourced and should meet all requirements as long as no claim is made as to his unverified actual orientation. Doc ♬ talk 18:09, 21 October 2006 (UTC)

A CNN video on youtube is circulating, with Robin Williams indirectly poking fun at Cooper's sexual orientation. Notable? Jumping cheese ^Cont@ct 05:52, 21 November 2006 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure that video is Robin Williams making fun of Ryan Seacrest being gay, not Anderson Cooper. Either way, I don't think it's notable. Robb0995 08:15, 27 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Vandalism

FYI: the latest vandal (IP 147.253.112.43) is coming out of Stetson University in Florida. Mowens35 18:00, 8 November 2006 (UTC)