CNN's Anderson Cooper fights back tears as he reads out all 49 Orlando shooting victim's names

'They are more than a list of names. They are people who loved and who were loved'

An emotional CNN journalist struggled to finish a broadcast on the Orlando nightclub shooting as he read all 49 names of the people brutally killed in an LGBT nightclub.

In a powerful seven-minute address, Anderson Cooper highlighted the devastating scale of the attack on Pulse nightclub committed by Omar Mateen, a US citizen who was killed by police after taking those inside hostage.

Fighting back tears, Anderson read the names and poignant descriptions from loved ones of the victims who died in the worst shooting in modern US history.

In a heavy address, Cooper vowed not to show the face of Mateen, which he said “has been shown far too much already”. Instead, he called for the focus to be on remembering those who lost their lives. Where possible, the person’s name was read out alongside an image.

“We think it is important that you hear their names,” he said. “They are more than a list of names. They are people who loved and who were loved."

Anderson found it particularly difficult to read out the name of the youngest victim, Akyra Monet Murray, who was just 18 and had recently graduated high school. Murray had contacted her parents at 2am begging for them to come and collect her from the club because of a shooting, calling them again just a few moments later and screaming that she was losing blood.

Cooper’s tribute was echoed by Lady Gaga, who also read out the names at a vigil in Los Angeles overnight. “This is an attack on humanity itself,” she told the crowd. “This is an attack on everyone.”

On Sunday, Adele burst into tears during a concert in Belgium as she paid tribute to the victims and the LGBTQ community, describing them as “like my soulmates”.

JK Rowling also told her seven million Twitter followers how she was unable to stop crying after learning one of the victims, Luis Vielma, was an operator on a Harry Potter-themed ride at the Universal Orlando Resort theme park. Vielma was 22-years-old.