<\/p>\n
Anderson Cooper<\/a>\u2019s time is up on \u201c60 Minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The celebrity.land<\/a> anchor shared a tearful farewell<\/a> with viewers on Sunday, stepping away from the long-running CBS news magazine after two decades as a correspondent.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Cooper explained that he\u2019s leaving the show so he can spend more time with his young sons, Wyatt and Sebastian, as they grow up.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cI\u2019ve got a 4-year-old and a just-now 6-year-old, and I want to spend as much time with them as I can while they still want to spend time with me,\u201d the broadcast journalist said. \u201cAnd those days, that clock, is ticking, I think.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cI don\u2019t think the reality has really hit me that I\u2019m not going to be doing this any longer,\u201d he added. \u201cYou know, to give up something you\u2019ve watched since you were a kid. Yeah, I will miss this.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n For his final \u201c60 Minutes\u201d appearance, Cooper revisited his career in an \u201cOvertime\u201d segment, reflecting on a montage of sit-down interviews with figures like Prince Harry<\/a>, Lady Gaga and Adele, along with conversations with lesser-known individuals whose stories also left an impact.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cThe thing is, it\u2019s never felt like work,\u201d Cooper explained. \u201cIt\u2019s felt like you\u2019re stepping into people\u2019s lives, and you\u2019re invited into people\u2019s homes.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cYou\u2019re invited into their struggles,\u201d he continued, \u201cyou\u2019re invited into whatever it is that has brought them to be on \u201860 Minutes.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n At the end of the segment, the emotional newsman looked into the camera one last time and delivered a teary sign-off of his \u201cI\u2019m Anderson Cooper\u201d before walking off set.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Cooper first announced his departure<\/a> from \u201c60 Minutes\u201d in February, saying he planned to step back from the program to focus more on his family. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cBeing a correspondent at \u201860 Minutes\u2019 has been one of the highlights of my career,\u201d he said in a statement. \u201cI got to tell amazing stories, and work with some of the best producers, editors and camera crews in the business.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n CBS also issued a statement thanking Cooper for his contributions, noting that for more than 20 years, he \u201ctook \u201860 Minutes\u2019 viewers on journeys to faraway places, told us unforgettable stories, reported consequential investigations and interviewed many prominent figures.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cWe\u2019re grateful to him for dedicating so much of his life to this broadcast, and understand the importance of spending more time with family,\u201d the network added. \u201c\u201860 Minutes\u2019 will be here if he ever wants to return.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Cooper\u2019s exit follows an overhaul of CBS\u2019s news division after the merger of the network\u2019s parent company, Paramount Global, and Skydance last August, which the FCC approved after Paramount settled a lawsuit<\/a> by the Trump administration. The changes that followed included CBS News hiring writer Bari Weiss as its editor-in-chief, a move that drew scrutiny given her lack of experience in broadcast news.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n