Anderson Cooper is someone I hope to emulate in my own career as a journalist. His deep compassion and humility are exactly what every anchor and “news icon” needs to display. The two things that will stick with me most from his visit are his mother’s advice to “follow your bliss” and Cooper’s emphasis on bearing witness and sharing the stories of those whose voices go unheard. I cannot think of anything I want to do more than share the stories of others to make a difference in the world.
“I think you should become a real person before you become a fake one,” Cooper said. He mentioned that anchors and politicians today embody this fake person identity. “I believe in facts, not opinion.” There is too much shouting already and “the last thing we need is another overpaid, over blow-dried anchor to tell you what to think.” This is something that is so important to remember when journalists make it big. They cannot let themselves become celebrities, but need to remain humble and realize it’s an honor to report the news to those watching at home and online. Reporters also should keep their opinions to themselves and not present opinion as fact. It’s our duty to tell people what to think about, not what to think.
As a political science major, Cooper’s entire undergraduate focus was on the Soviet Union. “When the Berlin Wall fell, I was totally screwed,” he said. He joked and said he eventually realized it wasn’t “all about me” and that he was OK with the wall falling.
After a trip to Africa, Cooper fell in love with different countries and the vitality of the people. He tried to become a foreign correspondent but had difficulty getting into the business. Instead, he decided to become a war correspondent. “Since no one would give me a chance, I had to take a chance,” Cooper said. “And if no one would give me an opportunity, I would create one.” Cooper started going to wars and covering them. His first war coverage experience was when he created his own press pass and snuck into Burma.
Somalia is where Cooper found his calling. It was there that he discovered he could bear witness to struggles and tell of peoples’ lives. He spent time in a hut with a family with countless troubles. “I may have gone to Yale,” he said, “but I think I was really educated in Somalia.” His trips to the other far reaches of the planet taught him more than his Ivy League education did.
In war you expect to find darkness, but there is light as well, Cooper said. As a war correspondent, he runs toward what everyone else is running from. When he returns home, it is dull in comparison, which is why it is so important to face what scares us most. You can’t allow your own fears and your own security to alter the things you see and report. And when you become numb to the war and its terrors, it’s time to step back and let yourself become affected by it again. “If you can’t feel moved by what you’re seeing, you shouldn’t be doing it.”
Cooper returns to New Orleans at least once per month to keep the story alive. It’s a part of his belief to bear witness. During Katrina, governments failed in the way individuals didn’t.
Cooper said it was surreal walking into the Oval Office and seeing President Barack Obama sitting there waiting for Cooper to interview him. The room was sweltering, leading Cooper to the conclusion that there is no sweat in the political realm. Since Nixon, all the politicians must have had their sweat glands removed, or gotten Botox, Cooper mused.
At the presidential debates, the pressure is palpable, Cooper remembered. Every candidate is staring you down wanting to be called on – you can’t look him or her in the eyes, or then you’re obligated to call on them. John Edwards raises his eyebrows and leans, but Hillary Clinton just stares, he said, so he just decided to stare at their navels, “which was very uncomfortable.”
One thing that was hilarious to Cooper was observing politicians when they point. They can’t use the normal point, he said, so they have a “political point.” Cooper said he has become obsessed with it but has never seen an “actual human being” use the point. He charged the audience to go forth today and use the political point from now on.
Partisan bloggers are becoming ubiquitous and we now have access to more information than ever before. Independent journalism comes with great dangers because you have to know where information is coming from. It’s a great privilege to tell people’s stories and it’s a great privilege to be on television and in people’s homes, Cooper said. “The best thing to do is to walk in other people’s shoes as much as possible.”
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