Anderson Cooper and Jodie Foster: The Glass Closet and Gay Visibility in the Media

Abstract

Anderson Cooper has routinely graced the list of Out Magazine’s top 50 most powerful celebrities, appearing, perhaps most memorably, in 2008 next to Jodie Foster. But the pictures were pasted onto Popsicle sticks, held on to by an anonymous man and woman in suits, a clear reminder that these two celebrities were indeed firmly hiding in the glass closet. By glass closet, Out Magazine and others mean the person whom “everyone” knows is gay, but never acknowledges her or his sexuality, despite ample evidence to suggest that this person is indeed living an openly gay life. Cooper and Foster shared not only a cover and a glass closet, but also the obligation to make a difference in the tale of gay visibility and celebrity. In the entertainment world, far too few people have ever admitted to any kind of gay life, and in the world of news, there are just a handful of openly gay individuals, with Cooper being the first primetime national news anchor (though on cable) to actually come out. I tackle Cooper here in this Foster Forum because his coming out story both mirrors and departs from Foster. His coming out can be classified as a “nonevent.” Cooper came out, but the headlines in mainstream news were about visibility, not about Cooper-the-celebrity. At first glance, the two shared much in common from within the glass closet. They professed a demand for privacy; justified staying in this glass closet as good for their work; and note that they are not hiding anything from anyone who should know. But here is the departure. Cooper came out loud and proud—and