Anderson Cooper wishes Kathy Griffin well, talks photo controversy further

Back when Kathy Griffin first posted that shocking photo of herself holding a fake severed head of Donald Trump, the reaction from everyone was quick and severe. The comedienne eventually lost her gig hosting CNN’s New Year’s Eve broadcast with Anderson Cooper, and even Cooper himself condemned the image as “disgusting” and “inappropriate.”

So why did Cooper choose to speak out further, with it being such common knowledge that he and Griffin are friends outside of working together? Much of that has to do with the public’s perception of their friendship. During an appearance at the Comerica Theatre in Arizona alongside another friend in Bravo guru Andy Cohen, Cooper explained (per USA Today) that there was such a perception that he would automatically endorse what Griffin had to say, which could in turn impact his own career:

“People were assuming I was somehow responsible for this and I just felt I should point out that I actually think this is pretty important as somebody who works overseas and, you know, journalists get beheaded and this is not a joke.”

Cooper added that he understood CNN’s decision to remove her from her NYE post, and added that he was not involved in making that decision. As for Griffin’s future, he wishes her the best, stating the he doesn’t “want anybody’s career to be destroyed because they do something unfortunate and inappropriate.”

At some point, we feel that someone will hire Griffin to do something else. Remember, this is a culture of provocation where someone, interested in provoking the public for attention, will want to hire her to get just that. Also, remember just how many other people there are out there who have said terrible things and somehow found a way to get back to work. Life moves on, and so will this.

None of this necessarily sates our curiosity to learn the future of the CNN broadcast, which is a New Year’s Eve tradition for us and was one of the most entertaining events of the year during its tenure. Does the network hire someone new to host alongside Anderson, or instead devote three hours to slowly watching Don Lemon get drunk and all the nonsense that comes with that? So much intrigue on our end (and also our decision to watch) depends heavily on answers to these questions.

Do you think that Griffin will land some other gig in the future following some of what transpired? Be sure to share now in the comments! (Photo: CNN.)