BRAVO ANDERSON!!!

July 2, 2012

Anderson Cooper Comes Out: 'The Fact Is, I'm Gay'

Posted: 07/02/2012 -- 11:08 am | Updated: 07/02/2012 -- 12:11 pm

Anderson Cooper has, at long last, publicly said he is gay.

Cooper made the announcement in an email to writer Andrew Sullivan.

"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," he wrote.

Cooper's sexuality has long been the subject of ample media speculation, but he has never publicly confirmed it -- a fact which he also seemed to address in the email to Sullivan:

"I have always been very open and honest about this part of my life with my friends, my family, and my colleagues. In a perfect world, I don't think it's anyone else's business, but I do think there is value in standing up and being counted. I’m not an activist, but I am a human being and I don't give that up by being a journalist.

Previously, the 45-year-old CNN anchor and daytime talk show host has been romantically linked to Benjamin Maisani, the co-owner of New York City gay bars Eastern Bloc and Bedlam.

Cooper becomes the fifth, though by far the most high-profile, openly gay anchor in the cable news business. He joins CNN colleagues Don Lemon and Jane Velez-Mitchell, as well as MSNBC's Thomas Roberts and Rachel Maddow.