Piers Morgan Calls Anderson Cooper a 'Poisonous Little Backstabber'

British podcaster Piers Morgan called his former CNN colleague Anderson Cooper a "poisonous little backstabber" during an interview on “The Megyn Kelly Show,” rekindling longstanding tension between the two journalists.

Morgan made the comments while appearing on the Monday, March 23, episode of Megyn Kelly's podcast to criticize CNN and Cooper's new "podcast set" experiments, predicting they will fail due to what he perceives as a lack of audience connection.

Morgan, who, like Kelly, transitioned from traditional TV news host to podcaster, argued that CNN's shift in aesthetic is an admission that the traditional cable news model is failing, stating, "Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery. They are trying to look like us.”

The former CNN anchor deemed the network's content "cringe" and "desperate," calling Cooper's behavior "completely toe-curling" and adding that his former colleague is a "poisonous little backstabber."

“Anderson Cooper never expresses an opinion worth listening to anyway, but that's why people turn to us. No one is controlling us, we say what we believe in the moment — strident, honest, opinion,” Morgan quipped.

“When we had our little tear-up about Bad Bunny, 42 million people watched one of those clips of me and you going at it. Anderson Cooper could roll his sleeves up and take all his clothes off, but he's not going to get numbers like that!" he added.

The long-standing rivalry between Morgan and Cooper primarily centers on Morgan's claims that Cooper’s ratings performance led to the cancelation of his CNN show, Piers Morgan Live, in 2014.

Their relationship soured publicly after Morgan's departure.

After his show was canceled due to poor viewership, Morgan told Politico that Cooper was a "bad lead-in" who failed to drive the audience necessary for the 9 p.m. slot.

Morgan famously critiqued Cooper’s hosting style, calling him a "great field reporter" but lacking the charisma needed to be a "studio star." He later referred to Cooper as a "stiff in a studio" in a column for The Hollywood Reporter.

Reports surfaced that while at cable news network, Morgan had actively tried to push Cooper out of his primetime slot to gain more control over the network's schedule.

In a rare move, a CNN spokesperson officially responded to Morgan’s comments, calling them "sad" and noting that Cooper’s show (AC 360) consistently had higher ratings than Morgan’s program during their time together.

While Cooper usually ignores the drama, he made headlines during a New Year's Eve broadcast by mockingly asking, "Piers, who?" and sarcastically hoping that Morgan would one day find "gainful employment."

The former America's Got Talent judge is currently hosting "Piers Morgan Uncensored," a global podcast that moved exclusively to YouTube in early 2024.