Anderson Cooper is a journalist and political commentator.

Early life

Cooper was born in 1967 in New York City – he is the son of the writer Wyatt Emory Cooper and the heiress Gloria Vanderbilt. His maternal great-great-great-grandfather was business magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who founded the prominent Vanderbilt shipping and railroad fortune.

Career

Cooper studied at Yale University.

After graduating, he travelled to Myanmar and Vietnam, and began producing news reports from the region.

In 1995 Cooper became a correspondent for ABC News, eventually rising to the position of co-anchor on its overnight World News Now program on September 21, 1999. In 2000 he switched career paths, taking a job as the host of ABC’s reality show The Mole.

In 2001, Cooper joined CNN where he has continued to build his career and has become one of the leading news personalities in the US.

Personal life

Cooper publicly discusses his sexuality as a gay man.

Cooper has one son, who he co-parents with his ex-partner, Benjamin Maisani.