TV Newser (or maybe a reader of the site) found this promotional site for CNN's Anderson Cooper 360. It has all the usual stuff you'd find on such a site: a bio of the host, video, behind the scenes info, etc. But this one is hosted by a talking, mini Anderson Cooper himself!

Cooper walks into the right side of the screen and tells you about the show, and when you click the various categories he gives you a little introduction to what your'e about to see. If you click on "About Anderson" he explains how he's bored of talking about himself. If you click on "Behind AC360," he says they've edited out all the yelling and screaming that goes on behind the scenes of the show. You can even buy Anderson Cooper shirts and hats and pens! Unfortunately, he doesn't have anything funny to say about this, the link just goes to the Turner Networks store.

You can even find out what Cooper has on his iPod. He seems to like Elvis Costello, Arctic Monkeys, Radiohead, Johnny Cash, Sugar, and The Hives.

[via TV Newser]

I have been one of the very few Anderson Cooper supporters around here. While most see him as the bad guy who took over for Aaron Brown, or as "that guy from The Mole," I see him as a solid, veteran reporter who has done a lot and actually earned his job at CNN.

In the new Vanity Fair, there's an excerpt from Cooper's upcoming memoir/book of reportage, Dispatches From The Edge (the Vanity Fair web site has a preview of the article, but you'll have to buy the print edition for the actual article). Cooper mixes the pain and horror of what he saw in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina with the personal story about how the suicide of his older brother Carter affected him and his family. It's quite a read.