CNN, in its distinctive New Year’s style, sounded like 2021 celebrating across the country with correspondents in various stages of intoxication, to the delight of the spectators.
Journalist Anderson Cooper and television personality Andy Cohen hosted news coverage together for the third year in a row and pivoted CNN anchors, musical guests and New Year’s Eve party correspondents throughout the country, including Palm Beach, Florida. , Nashville and Las Vegas. Cohen continued his tradition of cooperating with Cooper and several guests with liquor shots during the broadcast, including tequila and Jägermeister.
The duo started drinking live shortly after 8 p.m.
Cooper, the “Anderson Cooper 360” news program that has won nine Emmys, has a habit of making horrified faces while drinking, and CNN seemed happy to capitalize on its viral reactions, which continued throughout the night. After one of several shots, taken While talking to rapper 50 Cent in Miami, Cooper held his face long enough for the camera to move away from his guest.
“I didn’t want to explode in front of 50 Cent,” he spat. “I was trying to look great in front of him.”
Later in the show, just before midnight, the Peabody Award-winning anchor asked the millennial question, “What is Jäger?”
Cooper has hosted the network’s New Year’s Eve programming for more than a decade and was joined for years by comedian Kathy Griffin, known for countering Cooper’s normally serious behavior with emaciated behavior and R-rated jokes. , including appearing on stage in her underwear in 2011.
Since Griffin resigned from the host site in 2017, Cohen has taken on a lead role on the Times Square set. CNN hosts Don Lemon and Brooke Baldwin have anchored the countdown to the Central Time program and shot their segments from New Orleans, where they have had no trouble finding the party. Lemon got remarkably drunk and pierced his ear on New Year’s Eve 2016, before discussing his dissatisfaction with his love life.
Lemon and Baldwin were in Nashville to play in 2021 and were celebrated with musicians and partygoers alike. Shortly before midnight, Eastern time, Lemon mocked a large ear-piercing revelation.
It turned out that Lemon had a couple of tattoos, albeit temporary ones, on his forearms that said “Lemon 2021”. Baldwin was among those surprised by Lemon’s “announcement,” before dismissing the tattoos (and Lemon’s campaign) as fake.
“What is happening?” she asked. “It simply came to our notice then. I’m really surprised. “
The network did not deploy breathalyzers in the air, so it is unclear whether the journalists and hosts involved were intoxicated or not, but they appeared to have a party to close in 2020.
Peter Bailey-Wells can be contacted at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @pbaileywells.