Anderson Hays Cooper, born on June 3, 1967, is a prominent American broadcast journalist and political commentator. Known for anchoring CNN's Anderson Cooper 360° and serving as a correspondent for CBS News' 60 Minutes, Cooper has built a reputation for his on-the-ground reporting of breaking news events. His coverage of Hurricane Katrina significantly increased his popularity. Cooper's career began after graduating from Yale University in 1989, when he started filming war-torn regions for Channel One News. He joined CNN in 2001 and has been the host of Anderson Cooper 360° since. For his coverage of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Cooper received a National Order of Honour and Merit from the Haitian government. He has also won 18 Emmy Awards, two Peabody Awards, and an Edward Murrow Award.
Beyond his professional achievements, Cooper's personal life, including his approach to food and health, has garnered attention. This article delves into Cooper's evolving relationship with food, his dietary habits, and how they intertwine with his demanding career and personal experiences.
Early Life and Influences
Born in Manhattan, New York City, Cooper is the younger son of writer Wyatt Emory Cooper and artist Gloria Vanderbilt. His family history is marked by both prominence and tragedy. His father's death during heart surgery when Cooper was ten profoundly impacted him. Cooper considers his father's book Families a guide on how to live his life. The suicide of his older brother, Carter Vanderbilt Cooper, when Anderson was 21, further shaped his perspective on loss and survival. Gloria Vanderbilt later wrote about her son's death in A Mother's Story, attributing the suicide to a psychotic episode induced by an allergy to the anti-asthma drug salbutamol. "Loss is a theme that I think a lot about, and it's something in my work that I dwell on," Cooper has said. "I think when you experience any kind of loss, especially the kind I did, you have questions about survival: Why do some people thrive in situations that others can't tolerate?"
Cooper's early experiences included being photographed by Diane Arbus for Harper's Bazaar as a baby and appearing on The Tonight Show with his mother at age three. He also appeared on To Tell the Truth as an impostor at the age of nine. After graduating from the Dalton School, Cooper traveled around Africa for several months, where he contracted malaria and was hospitalized in Kenya. He later attended Yale University.
Career Beginnings and Dietary Quirks
After graduating from Yale, Cooper worked to get into on-air reporting, enlisting a friend to create a fake press pass. He lived in Vietnam for a year to study the Vietnamese language at the University of Hanoi and filmed reports of Vietnamese life for Channel One. In 1995, Cooper became a correspondent for ABC News, eventually co-anchoring World News Now in 1999.
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His early career was marked by unconventional eating habits. Cooper admitted that he had never tried spinach or most other green vegetables and did not drink hot beverages. He once ate the same turkey plate from Boston Market for lunch every day for four months. On his show, he pointed to a pile of packaged, processed turkey franks in his fridge, stating, "This is the only food that I know how to cook."
The Picky Eater and the Advent of Soylent
Cooper's aversion to food beyond a limited range of options became a well-known aspect of his public persona. In 2011, he openly discussed his lifestyle and picky eating habits on his talk show, revealing his limited culinary preferences.
In a 2015 Vanity Fair interview with Anthony Bourdain, Cooper described eating as a "waste of time" and expressed his preference for plain foods like oatmeal, salad, and salmon sushi. This perspective led him to explore alternative methods of obtaining nutrition efficiently.
By 2018, Cooper had adopted Soylent, a meal replacement drink, as a staple in his diet. "I don't care about food," he told The Hollywood Reporter. "So I'm trying to replace all food with this because it would be, like, three fewer decisions in a day." He favored coffee-flavored Soylent.
His choice was met with skepticism and humor, particularly from his friend Anthony Bourdain, who was a staunch advocate for the cultural and social importance of food. Bourdain famously quipped that Soylent was "evil in a bottle" and "anti-human." Despite Bourdain's disapproval, Cooper maintained that Soylent was an efficient way to manage his meals during his busy days. "I see it as saving time to give me pleasure in other realms," Cooper argued. "I'm wasting time eating when I could be receiving pleasure in other ways."
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Understanding Soylent and Its Implications
Soylent is a soy-based shake designed to provide the elements of a nutritious diet in a convenient form. It contains macronutrients like carbohydrates, fats, and proteins, as well as micronutrients. While it offers a practical solution for those seeking quick sustenance, it lacks the sensory experience and social aspects associated with traditional meals.
Nutritional experts emphasize that food is more than just fuel. Alissa Rumsey MS, RD, notes that "Food and nutrition is about so much more than just the macronutrients and micronutrients. Food is something that is meant to be enjoyed, not for the vitamins, minerals or fiber it provides, but for the taste and the pleasure it brings us."
While Soylent can be useful in situations where access to real food is limited, it is generally not recommended as a replacement for a varied and enjoyable diet.
Balancing Career and Personal Life
Cooper's demanding career has undoubtedly influenced his dietary choices. Anchoring Anderson Cooper 360°, reporting for 60 Minutes, and co-hosting events with Andy Cohen require a significant time commitment, leaving little room for elaborate meal preparation or leisurely dining experiences.
His adoption of Soylent reflects a pragmatic approach to managing his nutritional needs amidst a hectic schedule. By streamlining his food intake, Cooper aims to minimize the time and mental energy devoted to meal-related decisions.
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Personal Life and Recent Developments
Cooper's personal life has seen significant changes in recent years. On April 30, 2020, he announced the birth of his son, Wyatt Morgan Cooper, via surrogate. He later welcomed a second son, Sebastian Luke Maisani-Cooper, on February 10, 2022. Though no longer romantically involved with Benjamin Maisani, the two co-parent their children.
These personal milestones may have influenced Cooper's perspective on food and nutrition, as he now balances his career with the responsibilities of fatherhood.
Addressing Grief and Loss Through a New Podcast
In 2022, Cooper launched a deeply personal podcast exploring grief and loss. The podcast features interviews with notable people discussing their experiences with grief and was inspired by his own life, including the losses of his father, brother, and mother.
Reflecting on these losses, Cooper shared, "What has struck me is the degree to which I had not dealt with this stuff at all." He aimed to explore the universal human experience of grief, finding strength in the idea that he is "on a road that has been traveled by everybody, in one form or another."