The Tragic Loss Of Anderson Cooper's Brother, Carter

This article contains mentions of suicide.

Anderson Cooper made a name for himself as CNN's anchor and an award-winning journalist, boasting an impressive honors collection, including 18 Emmys. Aside from his career accomplishments, Cooper has devoted himself to sharing his life story with others in hopes of helping them deal with grief and loss. The media personality has authored various texts on the subject, spoken extensively about it, and even launched a podcast, "All There Is with Anderson Cooper," where he discusses navigating the loss of a loved one and the process of healing.

Indeed, the journalist is intimately familiar with loss. What you may not know about Anderson Cooper is that, when he was just 10 years old, he unexpectedly lost his father due to complications from heart-related surgery. "When my dad died in 1978, I dug a deep hole inside myself and pushed my fear, sadness, and anger down into it. I barely even cried," Cooper shared in an emotional text he penned to CNN. However, his family's sorrows didn't end there.

Tragically, Anderson faced further heartbreak when his older brother, Carter Cooper, died by suicide in 1988. The brothers' mother, the late fashion designer and artist Gloria Vanderbilt, was with Carter at the time of his death. According to a New York Times report, Carter had been struggling with diagnosed depression.

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In the years after Carter Cooper's death, Anderson Cooper candidly shared his feelings about the tragedy on multiple occasions. In another text published by CNN in 2018, Anderson wrote of his relationship with Carter, "I'd always considered us close, though now I'm not so sure, because I didn't see the pain he was in. And when I did get a glimpse of it, it scared me so much I didn't know how to help." Later in the article, Anderson admitted that, in retrospect, there were signs Carter was not doing well and that he regretted not finding a way to reach out.

Anderson shared a similar sentiment in a 2021 interview with People, explaining that he has had to learn to live without knowing why his brother decided to take his own life. He candidly shared, "There's not a day that goes by that I don't think about what he would be doing."

In a podcast episode titled "Sadness Isn't An Enemy," Anderson delved further into his feelings regarding the loss of his brother, revealing that the deaths of Carter and their father prompted him to pursue war reporting, which marked the beginning of his career. As Anderson was dealing with his grief, he wanted his surroundings to mimic his internal anguish, pushing him to "expose [himself] to the rawest, most overwhelming of feelings."

Despite grappling with tremendous losses at a young age, Anderson Cooper's healing journey has been transformative. During a conversation with actor Ashley Judd on his CNN podcast, titled "Grief, Love, and Naomi," Anderson shared that he had a particularly hard time coming to terms with the fact that he didn't really know his late brother very well. However, by the end of the interview, the journalist candidly acknowledged that relationships with deceased loved ones can still evolve, which is why he shifted his focus from the way his brother died to cherishing how he lived his life.

In an interview with The New York Times, Anderson touched upon the topic of loss and grief affecting his parenting (Anderson is a father of two kids). The CNN anchor shared, "I used to see this sadness behind my mom's eyes. I want my kids to not see that behind my eyes. I don't want it to be behind my eyes anymore."

On his Instagram page, Anderson frequently posts throwback photos of himself and Carter Cooper when they were kids, often reminiscing about Carter's characteristics or sharing anecdotes from their childhood. The CNN journalist also never fails to honor his late brother. On the 35th anniversary of Carter's death, under a photo of the two of them embracing as children, Anderson poignantly shared, "I think of him and miss him every day."