Anderson Cooper is an amazing reporter and also an amazing writer. If you take the time to even just read the articles he has writen you cannot help but be moved sometimes even to tears. Aaron Brown had a tired winey voice and I could not stand to watch him for more than three minutes. I like that Anderson is in touch enough with his own feelings to let himself feel on air, and he is humble enough to go on shows like Cobert Report and The Daily Show and laugh at himself. How many people with the heritage he has could you find that would be sympathetic to the average person. He is honest in his reporting but not bias and how many reporters could you find that you could honestly say that about. I am from Canada too, and repeat E Jay's sentiments that I too wish we had reporters like Anderson here in Canada----we have we way too many like Aaron Brown.

Love Cooper. Love Brown. Note on Aaron Brown. I lived in Washington state for 40 years. Aaron Brown before showing up on ABC News,CNN etc. was an investigative reporter on Seattle TV. He investigated and dug up some hot stuff re corruption, college football,coverups etc etc. and was brave enough to report it, even though it endangered his career, even defying the station he worked for, choosing honor and integrity above cover up. I was delighted to dicover him surfacing on national TV. Don't ever say he was never "out there" or hasn't been in the trenches. Kudos to this guy!

I'm sorry but all American News sources are full of shit. Web based news resources have much more consistency than that of the bullshit that is American News. Each station/company has their own agenda. All the news gets edited to fit that profile. These guys might be good/great/fantastic reporters in their own right, and that very well may be, but the journalistic integrity of the American News Media is absolute trash.

All I can say is Anderson Cooper's reporting style on CNN has this 30 something Canadian watching news a la American everynight. Its refreshing and spontaneous. I don't find him rude but honest and direct, but speaking his mind as I would. Wish we have reporters like him in Canada.

I first came across Aaron Brown in 1991 while traveling in the Pacific Northwest, when he was an anchor in Seattle. I immediately liked the guy and thought he was far too good to just be on a local station. I was in Seattle for all of two weeks, and might have caught three or four of his shows. But I remembered him ever since, and, as others have also stated, I was happy to see hed finally landed a national position with ABC, albeit in a rotten time slot when no one but insomniacs and third-shifters could tune in. When CNN snatched him up, I was really glad to be able to regularly catch his show. I happened to be watching CNN the morning of 9/11. Hastily set up atop a nearby building in Manhattan within minutes of the first plane slamming into the WTC, Aarons calmness and thoughtfulness amidst the chaos and devastation that morning was nothing short of stunning. For myself and countless other viewers, his ability to maintain composure helped us to retain some shred of composure ourselves, and he was sadly comforting, to the extent any comforting was possible in such a situation. I already considered him the best news anchor around, but even if 9/11 was the first time Id ever laid eyes on him, my opinion would have been the same. He should have earned a permanent position of honor within CNN for that morning alone. I like Anderson Cooper, and dont wish to put him down. I do consider him a better reporter than an anchor, though. CNNs been tabloidizing itself for quite some time now, going for controversy over substance, opinion over fact, vitriol over balance (Crossfire, Talk Back Live, Jack Cafferty, etc.), and theyve been progressively losing my respect (though I do like Jack). But, at least when youre watching Jack Cafferty, you EXPECT bias, controversy and infotainment. Andersons sort of a pseudo-anchor, though, and blurs the distinction between being an anchor and entertainer. And, yes, he does what he does well. But to call him an anchor is, to me, a stretch, and misleading. Im not sure why Andersons the main focus of Aaron groupies irritation, though. Jon Klein, not Anderson Cooper, is the genius that silenced Mr. Brown, for simple personal dislike, by some accounts. And Wolf Blitzers face time has also benefited from Aarons axing. Now, him, Ill criticize! Hes the most self-serving pompous poor excuse for a news anchor that CNN has. Hes dripping with disingenuousness, for starters. Ive never sensed that he cares about any story. Hes quite rude, also. Not in a mean-spirited way, but just uncaring. In virtually every interaction with someone else, he just starts talking over them while theyre in mid-sentence, and hes an equal opportunity sort, interrupting colleagues and interviewees alike. I cant even watch him anymore. Now, HERE are two guys that ought to be getting their walking papers. Yep, CNNs all about ratings these days, trying to cater to the lowest common denominator hey, it worked for arch-enemy Fox, right? But, to paraphrase Ben Franklin, those who would sacrifice integrity for ratings deserve neither. And, with no high ground to turn to, the lowest common denominator becomes lower, and commoner. Americas collective IQ suffers as a result. If they keep going as they are, in ten years CNN will just look like a 24/7 Jerry Springer Show.

I used to watch Aaron Brown regularly when he worked for decade at a NBC network affiliate in Seattle. Then he worked a year or two for a CBS affiliate in Seattle. I thought he was the best local anchor in the Northwest. I wondered what had happened to him...then I discovered him at his new gig on ABC's over night/early morning news program. I was ecstatic when CNN picked him up. For me, he epitomized all that is good in an anchor.....something that has been missing nationally since the retirement of Walter Cronkite etc. Now that Aaron Brown is gone, I only watch CNN a fraction of the time that I used to. Cooper does not impress me in the least. The fact that he has spent time out in the field moves me little, as literally hundreds of reporters have done the same. As far as the present state of news is concerned,I find so much pretentiousness in how the networks treat news now. The kindest words I think of to describe it, is....It is sad and pathetic.

Although some of the previous comments are quite thought provoking, I'm not quite sure what (if any) relevance they may have in terms of either reporters competencies. I was a 'charter-member' of the original Anderson Cooper 360 Hour. Needless to say, I was drawn to his energy and his enthusiastic style. His recent sojourn to the Gulf States to cover Hurricane Katrina was nothing short of award-winning. However, his family background has absolutely 'zero' relevance in forming my opinion on his performance. Further, don't mistake Cooper's refreshingly candid and eager persona as being brash and/or rude. Likewise, any reference towards Brown wallowing in a catatonic-state is simply an observation born out of ingnorance. His unique style has 'always' been proportioned and deliberate... similar to the likes of Cronkite, Reasoner, Jennings, and Koppel. Any percieved anamosity between Brown and Cooper is primitively speculative. I'd 'bet-the-farm' that they'll be hitting the links (aka golf) together, once the transitional hype has subsided. Speaking of which... how paradoxal has the ill-fated Columbia Flight /golf-tournament controversy been for Brown? On February 1st 2003, he's revered as the 'one' and 'only' esteemed CNN network anchor capable of broadcasting the tragedy. By November 2nd 2005, he's fallen from Jon Klein's grace and become another media commodity. Huh! Did I miss something? As a retired businessman, I've experienced the phenomenon of one who was expected to be available 24/7. Consequently, I find it completely irrelevant whether Brown was golfing, spending time with his family or simply relaxing. Speaking from experience, I respect his decision not to capitulate and surrender his personal time to the endless demands of corporate America/Canada. The entire incident should have been relatively inconsequential and not worthy of the media-hype that it gathered. There's no doubt that Mr. Brown's exit will be temporary. Countless appreciative viewers eagerly await his re-emergence and trust that his sabatical will be brief. Let's hope that if the ratings don't support Mr. Cooper in his new format and time-slot, that he doesn't become the proverbial 'scape-goat' and take the rap for Jon Klein's controversial decision.

JC, after reading your comments about Aaron Brown, I found some mis-information. Aaron Brown was on the air for hours and hours on 9/11 and that rocketed CNN's ratings. He did cover the Sunami(sp), if you watched NewsNight you would have seen him in Banda Ache covering it.

NewsNight with Aaron Brown was my rock. I could always count on an hour of information delivered in a way that I could connect with. Well-written, informative, well-delivered and I always tuned in. It was my nightly ritual. Now I don't. Uh, nothing against Cooper. I uh just see him uh as a "more words per minute" uh guy, delivering the news in a rushed, hurried and almost breathless style that fits with our cultural obsession -- uh speed!

NewsNight with Aaron Brown was my rock. I could always count on an hour of information delivered in a way that I could connect with. Well-written, informative, well-delivered and I always tuned in. It was my nightly ritual. Now I don't. Uh, nothing against Cooper. I uh just see him uh as a "more words per minute" uh guy, delivering the news in a rushed, hurried and almost breathless style that fits with our cultural obsession -- uh speed!