Kathy Griffin-Anderson Cooper Times Square Broadcast: Comedian Kisses CNN Host’s ‘Sardine’ [Video]

Kathy Griffin got very frisky with New Year’s Eve broadcast partner Anderson Cooper on CNN‘s Times Square coverage last night. On national television, she apparently tickled him in a sensitive area and later kissed his “sardine.”

Cooper responded to the initial contact by saying, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I have no sack of gifts here,” at which point Griffin asked “you’re calling your privates your Christmas presents?”

Later, after cutting to a remote in Eastport, Maine where residents traditionally kiss a statute of an eight-foot-sardine on New Year’s, Griffin … well, you can watch the video below.

Interestingly enough, Griffin admitted in the midst of this stunt that she was going on David Letterman soon “and he wants a moment.”

Newsbusters, which captured the Kathy Griffin-Anderson Cooper interaction, noted that, “no matter what vulgar things Kathy Griffin does on CNN‘s live New Year’s Eve broadcasts, the folks at the supposedly most trusted name in news continue to invite her back.”

On the other side of the political spectrum, Gawker presented this analysis of Griffin’s Times Square behavior:

“Kathy Griffin continued her annual New Years Eve tradition of making her CNN co-host Anderson Cooper squirm and giggle in front of the massive crowd in Times Square and the families watching at home. Cooper’s coming out this year apparently had no effect on his attitude toward getting felt up by Griffin in public because he was just as red-faced as he was in years past.”

According to TMZ, “Anderson was a good sport, but seemed genuinely annoyed after her first few trips downtown.” MSN opined that, “because in the Kathy Griffin playbook, if there’s one thing funnier than sexual harassment, it’s repeated sexual harassment.”

The New York Daily News offered this advice to the CNN anchor for future reference:

“Memo to Anderson Cooper: Your resolution for 2013 may want to be to stop inviting Kathy Griffin back for CNN’s New Year’s Eve live coverage.”

Do you think that Kathy Griffin is funny or do her attempts at being edgy come across as tedious and obnoxious?

Watch the Kathy Griffin-Anderson Cooper New Year’s Eve video:

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