Icame outin high school to my friends.
But reporters didnt really talk about their personal lives.
And then, with Twitter and the internet, suddenly you could access something about anybody.
Credit: Carter Smith for EW
And the expectation became, Youre a public person, you should be public.
And in the world of journalism, that was kind of still…
It was a difficult thing to navigate.
Anderson Cooper and mom Gloria Vanderbilt.Jenny Anderson/WireImage
I was traveling in the Middle East a lot.
I spent most of my early years in war zones.
I was by myself in Somalia and all these places and it was just easier not to say something.
But I reached a point where, by not saying something, I realized I was saying something.
Oftentimes you hear, Well why should I have to come out?
Im open in my private life.
Im not hiding anything.
But it does make a difference.
So, I thought about it a long time.
I spent a lot of time writing out an explanation, a letter.
And I decided not to make a run at make a big deal about it at the time.
But as soon as I got to Johannesburg, my phone lit up.
And Id realized Id forgotten to tell my mom I was making this announcement.
Celebrate 50 years of gay pride withEntertainment Weeklysspecial LGBTQ double issue, on stands Friday.
