Anderson Cooper Officially Comes Out as Gay

When "The Big Bang Theory" star Jim Parsons came out back in May, it didn't come as a huge surprise. In fact, Parsons' approach to the whole thing was to toss the announcement aside, presumably because his sexuality is his own business, and we (or Hollywood, anyway) should be at a point where a celebrity's sexuality isn't that big a deal.

For that same reason, Anderson Cooper has been avoiding the topic of his sexuality for years, even as he gained more and more popularity through his war reporting and his op-ed shows like "Anderson Cooper 360." But with bullying and anti-gay protesting still prevalent, Cooper felt a responsibility of sorts to come out publicly.

"It’s become clear to me that by remaining silent on certain aspects of my personal life for so long," said Cooper, "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."

And so, unlike Parsons, Cooper chose a more public announcement: "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."

You can read Cooper's full, rather touching statement at The Daily Beast.