Christian Cooper, Black Birder Falsely Accused In Central Park, Gets TV Show

"The name of National Geographic's new host for a show about birds may ring a bell: Christian Cooper, a Black man who was flung into the spotlight when a white woman called the police with false accusations against him, will now take viewers “into the wild, wonderful and unpredictable world of birds."

The world came to know Cooper's name after a video he took showed the life-long birdwatcher's public dispute between a white woman with an unleashed dog in New York City’s Central Park.

The woman, Amy Cooper, falsely accused Christian Cooper of threatening her and was shown in a widely-shared video calling police to report him. The two share a last name but are not related. Amy Cooper had faced a misdemeanor charge of falsely reporting the incident to police, which were dismissed in 2021 after she completed a psycho-education and therapy program focused on racial equity, prosecutors said."

Camille Fine reports for USA TODAY June 2, 2023.

SEE ALSO:

"Central Park birder Christian Cooper on being 'a Black Man In The Natural World'" (NPR)

"‘She Doesn’t Have The Power’: Central Park Birdwatcher Christian Cooper On Why Racist ‘Incident’ Won’t Define Him" (Guardian)

Source: USA TODAY, 06/20/2023