CNN Anchor to Speak in University of Arkansas Distinguished Lecture Series

Anderson Cooper

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Anderson Cooper, one of the most highly regarded television journalists in America, will speak at the University of Arkansas at 8 p.m. Friday, March 7, at Barnhill Arena as part of the Distinguished Lecture Series. The lecture is free and open to the public; no tickets are needed.

Anderson anchors the CNN primetime weeknight newscast Anderson Cooper 360^o and is probably best known for his reporting from New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. Cooper anchored CNN's overnight coverage of the war in Iraq, much of the network's live coverage of the Washington, D.C., area sniper story and coverage of the space shuttle Columbia explosion.

Cooper joined CNN in Dec. 2001, and soon after was sent to Afghanistan to report on the U.S. military's Operation Enduring Freedom.

Cooper worked as a correspondent for ABC News and Channel One News before moving to CNN. In 2003, he completed the memoir, Dispatches from the Edge, which is now available at the University Bookstore located in the Student Union. (Copies of Anderson's book will also be available for purchase before and during the event). Cooper graduated from Yale University with a bachelor's degree in political science.

The Distinguished Lecture Series is supported by student activity fees, the Associated Student Government and the University of Arkansas. Past lecturers have included Benazir Bhutto, Ehud Barak, Robert Redford, James Carville and Mary Matalin.

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Steve Voorhies, manager of media relations
University Relations
(479) 575-3583, voorhies@uark.edu