Though he's been out of the closet for less than a year, Anderson Cooper has become one of the most visible and well-known gay men in America. It's a position he alternately shies away from (declining to say much more about his personal life in his coming-out letter than "I love, and I am loved") and cultivates (dishing about the "Real Housewives" franchise with Bravo talk-show host Andy Cohen).
Last night, he appeared on Cohen's show to play both sides of the fence once more. After announcing that the pair had recently been on vacation in Brazil together, Cohen asked Cooper: "There are still several well-known people in the media who are in the closet. I wonder, has your opinion changed about whether those people should come out or not?"
Cooper replied: "Look, it's a personal decision everyone has to make for their own reasons. Obviously, I think we're all better off with greater visibility."
The CNN host clarified for those who might find it less than obvious that he was inherently in favor of visibility after years of refusing to address his sexuality: "I'm pretty understanding of where people are at, and people are at different places in their lives -- but there are a bunch of people I'm surprised haven't come forward, given their position and the extent to which they're forward about other aspects of their lives."
Cooper grinned. "We're outing people tonight!" No one, ultimately, was outed.
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