‘I NEED TEQUILA!’: Andy Cohen And Anderson Cooper Did Not Seem To Enjoy Having To Cover New Year’s Eve Sober For CNN

There’ve been a lot of changes at CNN in the last year, when the news network found themselves under new management. But perhaps the most controversial decision was this: on-air talent is no longer allowed to booze it up while on television. Granted, that doesn’t come up often. The biggest time it does is on New Year’s Eve, where it’s become a tradition for Andy Cohen and Anderson Cooper to knock back a few — or more than that — before the big ball drops. No more. The two had to ring in 2023 stone cold sober. And Cohen, at least, was no happy camper.

It was the first proper NYC New Year’s in three years, with packed crowds who didn’t have to worry about some deadly new COVID strain. Still, Cohen and Cooper had to report from Times Square without help from alcohol. Instead they downed mystery drinks. One was a pickle shot. Another was a glass of buttermilk. But it was a shot of apple cider vinegar that broke them, leaving them choking, miserable, and in need of a real drink.

It was Cohen that broke the hardest. “I NEED TEQUILA! HONESTLY!” he shouted after yet another unpleasurable — and unalcoholic — beverage.

The pair weren’t the only ones unhappy to celebrate New Year’s sober. At one point they were joined remotely by Kevin Hart, who felt bad for them. “I can’t believe this right now! Watching you guys, and you are completely sober! What is happening? What is happening right now?” Hart railed. “You guys can’t say anything about it, but I can! I can say things about it! This is absolute bullsh*t! I don’t like it one bit!”

Cohen and Cooper have tended to make waves with their New Year’s Eve coverage, with Cohen in particular getting tanked and spouting some very drunky things he has to apologize for later. At least he doesn’t need a drink to make news.

(Via Mediaite)