Sean Michael Coulthard (born December 8, 1968), better known by his stage name Michael Cole, is an American professional wrestling commentator and former journalist. He is signed to WWE, where he serves as the play-by-play commentator for the SmackDown brand, and since 2020, has served as Vice President of Announcing.
Coulthard began his career in the media as a journalist, working for CBS Radio. His first high-profile assignment was to cover the 1988 US presidential campaign of Democratic Party nominee Michael Dukakis. In 1992, he reported on the presidential campaign of Bill Clinton. Coulthard covered the 51-day siege at the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas, in 1993. The following year, he spent nine months covering the Yugoslavian civil war. In 1995, he was also selected to cover the aftermath of the Oklahoma City bombing. He returned to the presidential campaign trail in 1996 to cover the campaigns of Steve Forbes and Sen. Bob Dole.