OFFICE OF THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY DAVID E.

SULLIVAN
NORTHWESTERN DISTRICT

One Gleason Plaza, Northampton

56 Bank Row Greenfield
NorthwesternDA.org

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Dec. 18, 2020

To the Editor

For several years now, CNN’s New Year’s Live show has provided excellent entertainment to count down to a
new year. Unfortunately, it also glorifies binge drinking and overuse of alcohol, suggesting that alcohol is a
necessary ingredient to letting loose and having fun. This should stop. Our country is in the midst of a well-
documented addiction crisis that has enormous public health consequences.

The show features news anchor Anderson Cooper being egged on by Andy Cohen, who, over the course of the
evening succeeds in getting Anderson to drink more and more alcohol, as the hours tick closer to midnight.
Anderson and Andy also hand off to other locations where other television journalists are also imbibing to
excess. Peer pressure and misguided efforts to fit in are among the reasons young people begin drinking when
their brains are still developing, and because their brains are still developing, they are vulnerable to the impact
of substances in a way that the adult brain simply is not. Their portrayal on the show sends out a message loud
and clear and damaging: the way to have fun is to drink to excess; that it’s really cool to drink too much.

Television personalities, especially people who anchor news shows, are trusted figures in our country. Like it or
not, they are role models. This behavior is not something we want other adults, and certainly not teenagers, to
emulate.

The toll excessive alcohol use takes on our nation is nothing to joke about. Some 37 million adults binge drink
once a week, according to the Centers for Disease Control, which the CDC defines as is seven or more drinks.
By that measure, what you all do on your New Year’s Eve broadcast is binge drink, though you may think
otherwise. The CDC attributes 95,000 deaths a year to excessive alcohol use. One in every ten deaths annually
in our country is attributed to overuse of alcohol.

The National Institutes of Health reports that 14 million adults in the United States suffer from alcohol use
disorder and 414,000 youth between 12-17 suffer from alcohol use disorder. Alcohol-related driving crashes
led to 9,967 motor vehicle fatalities in 2014, according to the NIH.

The consequences of youth alcohol consumption are even more devastating because substance use while the
brain is still developing can alter the pathways in the brain to such a degree that it can lead to life-long
addiction issues.
Now more than ever, watching our trusted news figures binge drinking on national television is disheartening
and alarming. Much has been reported in recent months about the pandemic’s impact on mental health,
suicide rates, alcohol consumption. We know more people are drinking more and that some people in
recovery have relapsed. Also this year, more young people, concerned about the plight of our democracy have
turned to news shows like Anderson Cooper 360 to keep abreast of the news.

Young people look up to Anderson Cooper. It is too bad CNN is having him squander that admiration by
engaging in behavior we have for years been trying to get frat houses to stop.

Signed,

David Sullivan
Northwestern District Attorney

Laurie Loisel
Director of Outreach and Education, Northwestern District Attorney's Office