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.

“I just don’t talk about my personal life," he told New York magazine in 2005. "...The whole thing about being a reporter is that you’re supposed to be an observer and to be able to adapt with any group you’re in, and I don’t want to do anything that threatens that.”

On Monday, though, Cooper reversed course:

"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."

Cooper also said that he ultimately decided that he was doing more harm than good by not speaking up:

"It’s become clear to me that by remaining silent on certain aspects of my personal life for so long, I have given some the mistaken impression that I am trying to hide something - something that makes me uncomfortable, ashamed or even afraid. This is distressing because it is simply not true. I’ve also been reminded recently that while as a society we are moving toward greater inclusion and equality for all people, the tide of history only advances when people make themselves fully visible."

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 at least the sixth, 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, Rachel Maddow and Steve Kornacki.

【新闻快讯】

美国有线新闻网(CNN)金牌新闻节目主持人安德森·库珀日前在与知名新闻网站《每日野兽》专栏作家安德鲁·苏利文的邮件中正式承认了其同性恋身份。现年45岁的库珀在邮件中称：“我是同性恋，此前一直都是，以后我也会一直是；我对此很高兴很舒心很自豪。”

在邮件中库珀写道：“对于我生活中的这一部分，我对我的家人、朋友和同事是很诚实和开放的。在这个完美的世界中，我不认为我的性取向是别人应该关心的东西。但我觉得站出来表明立场是有价值的。我并不是同性恋的激进人士，但我不会因为我是个新闻工作者，就改变我的性取向。”

“关于长期对待我自己个人生活方面的沉默，现在越来越清晰的显示我给了大家一个错误的认识，认为我在刻意回避一些事情，一些让我自己感到不舒服，羞愧的或者甚至恐惧的事情。这是令人烦恼的因为这根本就不是真是的。”

库珀的性取向之前一直受到关注，纽约一家著名同性恋酒吧的股东Benjamin Maisani被认为是库珀的男友。而如今库珀成为第六位公开自己的同性恋身份的美国有线新闻集团的工作人员，也是其中最大牌的一位。