Photo: Getty Images
Is it possible I've been neglecting our favorite newsman? Here's a recent roundup:
> Oh, is it time for the bi-annual spate of thinky articles about just why Anderson Cooper is so damn popular? Apparently it is! As his name continues to be bandied about for possible Couric stop-gap duty, the number crunchers at MarketWatch dig deep to examine the man's completely explainable Q rating (that's TV-speak for recognizability, not queerness). The shocking conclusion: It's the demographics, stupid.
So what if Cooper once hosted ABC's "The Mole?" What matters most is that Cooper may be able to reach the disenfranchised 6:30 p.m. evening news audience of young adults.
CNN, like all of the television networks, is hungry for young viewers. They may be saddled with a middle-aged demographic but they would prefer to reach the kinds of young people that Madison Avenue also craves -- young people who have not yet formed loyalty to particular brands....
Cooper doesn't yell. He doesn't offend or point fingers. He is the prototypical 21st century CNN anchor.
> In power gay couple news, Cooper is not -- no matter how much he may claim to want to be -- Donna Brazile's boo. Al Gore's onetime campaign manager amiably flirted with the anchor during a political discussion -- and CNN clearly knows exactly why people tune in, as it's one of the featured videos on their site. (Brazile, if you hadn't heard, has been outed just about as many times and by as many publications as the Coop. We think they make a perfect pair.)
> Still searching for the perfect gift to get your favorite Anderfan? This site has a roundup of variously kitschy t-shirts and keychains -- and also recommends a subscription to Out, handy for the inevitable day that on our 583rd request, we get the man to actually speak with us.
UPDATE: No shit, CNN is selling a "you're not my boo" t-shirt on their site.
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