You probably know Anderson Cooper, whose résumé includes hosting his own news program on CNN, traveling around the world for his reporting, and being absurdly handsome.

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He spends his days discovering the most important facts to help viewers understand the world around them.
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But despite his aptitude for hard news reporting, it's not where he belongs. What Anderson Cooper really needs to do is return to his roots in reality television.
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That's right: Anderson Cooper, professional Serious Journalist, was once the host of a reality television show.

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And he was INCREDIBLE at it.

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For its first two seasons in the early 2000s, Anderson hosted The Mole, a show in which contestants completed puzzles and challenges while searching for a saboteur among themselves.

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Anderson oversaw contestants during all the challenges, which ranged from citywide searches for a missing partner to various difficult logic puzzles.
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And you could tell just how much he loved the whole thing.
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Unlike other reality hosts who just stand on the sidelines the whole time, Anderson developed a real camaraderie and rapport with the cast.
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Here are some contestants pushing him into a lake because why not?
And despite all of the ~hijinks~, Anderson was actually great when it came to keeping contestants on track and explaining challenges.

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He wasn't above the contestants; Anderson commanded authority without being authoritarian.

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Plus, hosting a reality show also gave Anderson the chance to show off his collection of leather jackets. You can't wear those on a fancy newscast, can you, Anderson?

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Alas, Cooper's reign at the helm of reality TV was short-lived, as after only two seasons, the show pivoted to feature only celebrity contestants — and a new host.
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And by the time the show returned to its regular format many years later, we had already lost Anderson to the allure of newscasting.

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But hey, that doesn't mean we can't still hope for a return to reality TV by one of its greatest hosts of all time.
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