Anderson Cooper is a single man. The CNN anchor and his boyfriend, Benjamin Maisani, have called it quits after nine years together, Us Weekly confirms.
“Benjamin and I separated as boyfriends some time ago,” Cooper, 50, said in a statement to Us on Thursday, March 15. “We are still family to each other, and love each other very much. We remain the best of friends, and will continue to share much of our lives together.”
The best of friends, indeed. The journalist and the 45-year-old nightclub owner, who were first linked in 2009, attended a benefit for the Windward School in New York City on Saturday, March 10, and were spotted together again at their home in the Big Apple’s Greenwich Village neighborhood three days later.
The news comes amid rumors that Cooper has already moved on and begun dating a 33-year-old doctor named Victor Lopez. The Daily Mail reported that the pair were first seen together at a hotel in Dallas in December and have since traveled to cities including New Orleans and Boston. Lopez has reportedly shared a series of photos with the TV host on his Instagram account, which is now private.
Cooper came out as gay in July 2012 after giving his friend Andrew Sullivan permission to publish an email that said, in part: “It’s become clear to me that by remaining silent on certain aspects of my personal life for so long, I have given some the mistaken impression that I am trying to hide something – something that makes me uncomfortable, ashamed or even afraid. This is distressing because it is simply not true.”
The Anderson Cooper 360° anchor continued at the time, “The fact is, I’m gay, always have been, always will be, and I couldn’t be any more happy, comfortable with myself, and proud.”
