News/Commentary

‘Does daddy get his juice?’ CNN’s Anderson Cooper, Andy Cohen reignite old NYE tradition, over and over again

January 1, 2024 | | Print Article

CNN’s Anderson Cooper rang in the new year by downing tequila shots in Times Square, a return to the unseemly conduct by the star anchor that was banned by ousted CEO Chris Licht the previous year.

With Licht now gone, prohibition has been lifted and Cooper along with fellow middle-aged gay celeb Andy Cohen poured down the booze as they had for years before the ex-boss put his policy into place that CNN employees were to engage in professional conduct during the traditional New Year’s Eve broadcast.

“Speaking of traditions, it’s the top of the hour. We’ve been here for seven years doing this, and for most of those years — well, at the top of the hour we typically have a toast,” Cohen said. “And I feel that I’m hearing from a lot of people, and I guess I’m just wondering, does daddy get his juice?” Cohen cooed.

“Can daddy get his juice responsibly?” Cooper responded while his gleeful broadcast partner answered, “Of course, always,” as he produced a bottle of tequila that would lubricate the duo’s spirits for the duration of the broadcast as they became more inebriated until the calendar officially rolled over into 2024.

“Anderson, this is why I’m a really good partner to you. I got it,” he said displaying the bottle that he pulled out of his bag. “We’re doing this.”

“The rules are that we are going to do a toast at the top of every hour,” Cohen told Cooper and the audience. “You at home are hanging out with us and we want to toast with you at the top of every hour,” he said as the clock on the screen read 8:03 p.m.

ADVERTISEMENT

The soon-to-be drunken duo then threw down their first of many onscreen shots, and for all anyone knows, plenty of offscreen ones too.

Happy days were officially here again for Cooper who was forced onto the wagon by the stricter network policy after the since-fired Don Lemon’s booze-fueled clown show from New Orleans two years ago.

The previous year, a plastered Cohen gave a boozy sendoff to former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio whose term had ended.

ADVERTISEMENT

“I’m not looking for a bunch of my respectful talent to be out there all night doing shots,” Licht told employees in a November 2022 company meeting according to the Washington Post which obtained a recording of the doomed network boss’s remarks. “That will be different. I don’t think that builds credibility.”

Licht’s efforts to take CNN back to the days when it was an actual news network weren’t popular with the “respectful talent” and when he allowed a town hall with former President Donald J. Trump in which the current GOP frontrunner made mincemeat out of star primetime anchor Kaitlan Collins in front of a pro-Trump crowd in New Hampshire.

The network boss was a dead man walking after the town hall which sparked an internal mutiny culminating in his unceremonious exit amid backlash over a vicious hit piece published by “The Atlantic” that sparked a fierce media backlash, ending his brief stint at the self-proclaimed “most trusted” name in news.

Chris Donaldson
Latest posts by Chris Donaldson (see all)

Comment

We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.

Latest Articles