Anderson Cooper

Anderson Hays Cooper (born June 3, 1967) is an American journalist, author, and television personality. He is the primary anchor of the CNN news show Anderson Cooper 360°. The program is normally broadcast live from a New York City studio; however, Cooper often broadcasts live on location for breaking news stories. From September 2011 to May 2013, he also served as host of his own eponymous syndicated daytime talk show, Anderson Live.

Early life and education

Cooper was born in New York City, the younger son of the writer Wyatt Emory Cooper and the artist, designer, writer, and heiress Gloria Vanderbilt. His maternal grandparents were millionaire equestrian Reginald Claypoole Vanderbilt and socialite Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt, and his maternal great-great-great-grandfather was Cornelius Vanderbilt of the prominent Vanderbilt shipping and railroad fortune. He is also a descendant, through his mother, of Civil War brevet Major General Hugh Judson Kilpatrick, who was with General William T. Sherman on his march through Georgia. Through his "Vanderbilt" line, he is a second cousin, once removed, of screenwriter James Vanderbilt.

Anderson Cooper 360°

Anderson Cooper 360° (commonly shortened to either AC-360 or 360) is an American television news show aired on CNN and hosted by the American journalist Anderson Cooper. It is also broadcast around the world on CNN International.

360° is broadcast live from CNN's Time Warner Center studios in New York City or on location from the site of a breaking news event, airing Monday through Friday from 8:00 pm ET to 9:00 pm ET, and on some nights with a two-hour edition to 10:00 pm ET. It is rebroadcast Monday through Thursday from 11:00 pm to Midnight ET, though on nights with the two-hour live edition shown from 8:00 pm ET, usually only the first hour is rebroadcast from 11:00 pm ET. The program covers a number of news stories of the day, usually through live or taped reports from the network's correspondents. The coverage can also include analysis from experts on the issues, commonly featured in or after the taped reports.

Beginnings

360° was launched on September 8, 2003, as a laid-back news/talk program running for one hour at 7:00 pm ET. During Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath, CNN executives noticed an impressive ratings boost of NewsNight due to Cooper's on-site reporting and growing popularity. The executives decided to cancel NewsNight and expand 360° to two hours on November 7, 2005. In August 2011, the show was moved up to 8:00 pm ET while maintaining a replay of the show at its original 10:00 pm ET time slot.