Anderson Cooper Comes Out As Gay

Anderson Cooper, American journalist and presenter, has publicly come out as gay.

There have been long standing rumours surrounding Cooper’s sexuality though the journalist has never directly addressed them nor discussed his private life in any great detail. However, in an email to the blogger Andrew Sullivan the CNN news anchor decided to out him self as a gay man.

In the email Anderson explained he hadn’t revealed his sexuality previously due to his desire to protect his privacy and because of his job “I’ve often found myself in some very dangerous places. For my safety and the safety of those I work with, I try to blend in as much as possible, and prefer to stick to my job of telling other people’s stories, and not my own”.

However, the journalist added his silence on his sexuality shouldn’t be viewed as him “trying to hide something – something that makes me uncomfortable, ashamed or even afraid”. Cooper stated he decided to come out because of the homophobic bullying that still exists in society and the discrimination faced by gay people of all ages.

“There continue to be far too many incidences of bullying of young people, as well as discrimination and violence against people of all ages, based on their sexual orientation, and I believe there is value in making clear where I stand. The fact is, I’m gay, always have been, always will be, and I couldn’t be any more happy, comfortable with myself, and proud.”

Cooper citing of homophobic bullying as part of his reason to come out echo’s that of Hollywood actor Zachary Quinto who revealed his homosexuality last year. The Star Trek actor revealed his sexuality following the suicide of teenager Jamey Rodemeyer who had suffered from homophobic bullying.

Anderson Cooper is the primary anchor of the CNN news series Anderson Cooper 360 and since September 2011 he has also presented his own daytime syndicated chat-show Anderson. Cooper has worked for a number of other broadcasters since as ABC and CBS.