Anderson Cooper Has No Intention to Leave News

NEW YORK – Anderson Cooper, the globe trotting CNN personality, is about to get even busier with the September launch of his daytime talk show. But he stressed that he has no intention of leaving the news business.

“I love news. I’m very passionate about it,” he said.

In a Q&A session with former CNN anchor and Early Show host Erica Hill at PromaxBDA – the annual marketing, branding and design confab – Cooper said he’ll film two programs three days a week, with backup shows in the event he must go on the road for CNN.

“We’ll have enough shows to cover a week if I have to go somewhere,” he said.

Cooper will be an executive producer on the show along with Jim Murphy, former EP of ABC’s Good Morning America and Lisa Morin, former senior supervising producer of Oprah. Anderson, which is being distributed by Warner Bros.’s Telepictures, will shoot in New York.

Related Stories

Lifestyle

L.A.'s Hammer Museum Reopens With 40,000 Square Feet of New Gallery Space

Lifestyle

Sam Neill Encourages Fans to "Not Worry Too Much" After Sharing His Cancer Is in Remission: "I Am Alive and Kicking"

Cooper stressed that although his daytime program will not focus on hard news, he would continue to “tell smaller human stories that tell a larger picture.”

Cooper explained that even ordinary human dramas can help others learn and laugh more, because people are drawn to stories that show relevance to their lives. Still, the program will feature a number of celebrity guests, including musicians and possibly politicians.

“I think if there’s an artist we want to get to know as a person,” Cooper said. “We won’t be doing a lot of politics … Maybe have a candidate on to learn about them in a much more personal setting.”

“It’s your own show, you should own it,” Hill said, insisting Cooper should cover whatever he feels is important.

“We don’t use the term ‘own’ on our show,” Cooper responded in a wry reference to Oprah Winfrey‘s cable network. “I think there is a wide range of topics we can over.”

“I’m happiest doing different things, learning new things. I like the interaction with the audience, and you can tell stories you can’t really tell on news … It doesn’t have the formality of a news show.”