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Katie Couric

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Katie Couric
Born (1957-01-07) January 7, 1957 (age 69)
Arlington, Virginia, U.S.
Occupation(s)Journalist, television host, author
Years active1979–present
Known forFirst solo female anchor of a major network evening news broadcast; co-host of Today; anchor of CBS Evening News; correspondent for 60 Minutes; host of Katie talk show; Global News Anchor for Yahoo; guest host of Jeopardy!
Notable workThe Best Advice I Ever Got: Lessons from Extraordinary Lives (2011)

Katherine Anne Couric ( ; born January 7, 1957) is a prominent American journalist and television host, as well as the founder of Katie Couric Media, a company specializing in multimedia news and production. She is the author of the daily newsletter Wake Up Call and has been the host of the podcast Next Question with Katie Couric since its launch in 2016.

Throughout her career, Couric has been affiliated with all three major U.S. television networks. She started her professional journey at CNN as an assignment editor. Her tenure at NBC News spanned from 1989 to 2006, followed by CBS News from 2006 until 2011, where she made history as the first solo female anchor of a major network’s evening news broadcast. Subsequently, she joined ABC News from 2011 through 2014. Between 2013 and 2017, Couric held the position of Global News Anchor for Yahoo. In 2021, she became the inaugural female guest host for the American version of Jeopardy!.

In addition to her work in journalism, Couric was the host of the syndicated daytime talk program Katie from 2012 to 2014, produced by Disney–ABC Domestic Television. Her notable roles include co-hosting Today, anchoring the CBS Evening News, and serving as a correspondent for 60 Minutes. Her 2011 publication, The Best Advice I Ever Got: Lessons from Extraordinary Lives, achieved status as a New York Times bestseller. In recognition of her contributions to television, she was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 2004.

Early life and career

Katherine Anne Couric was born in Arlington, Virginia, to Elinor Tullie (née Hene), who was a homemaker and occasional writer, and John Martin Couric Jr., a public relations professional and news editor for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution as well as United Press in Washington, D.C. Her mother was originally Jewish but converted to Presbyterianism prior to marriage. Couric's maternal grandparents descended from Jewish immigrants from Germany. Her father's lineage includes French, English, Scottish, and German roots. She was raised in the Presbyterian faith.[1][2] In a segment for Today, Couric explored her paternal ancestry tracing back to a French immigrant in the 19th century who worked as a cotton broker.[3]

Couric's education took place within Arlington Public Schools, attending Jamestown Elementary School, Williamsburg Middle School, and Yorktown High School, where she participated as a cheerleader.[4] During her high school years, she completed an internship at Washington D.C.’s all-news radio station WAVA. In 1975, she enrolled at the University of Virginia, following in her father’s footsteps,[5] where she joined the Delta Delta Delta sorority and took on multiple positions at UVA’s student newspaper, The Cavalier Daily. In her final year, she earned the distinction of Senior Resident of The Lawn, which is central to Thomas Jefferson’s Academical Village.[6] She completed her studies in 1979 with a bachelor’s degree in American Studies.[7][8]

Early professional years

Couric launched her journalism career in 1979 at the ABC News office located in Washington, D.C., before moving on to work as an assignment editor at CNN. Between 1984 and 1986, she served as a general assignment reporter for the CBS affiliate WTVJ in Miami, Florida. Subsequently, she reported for NBC-owned WRC-TV in Washington, D.C., where her work earned her recognition with an Associated Press award as well as an Emmy.

Tenure at NBC

In 1989, Couric became part of NBC News as Deputy Pentagon Correspondent and from 1989 to 1991 frequently substituted as anchor on various shows including Today, Meet The Press, and Weekend Today. She made a return to NBC during the 2018 Winter Olympics, co-hosting the opening ceremonies with Mike Tirico, delivering coverage and athlete interviews. During this event, she made a contentious comment about Dutch skating traditions, for which she issued an apology and was later invited by the U.S. Embassy in the Netherlands for a visit.

Today (1991–2006)

Couric was appointed national political correspondent for Today in 1989 and elevated to permanent co-anchor by April 1991. In 1994, she co-hosted Now with Tom Brokaw and Katie Couric, which eventually merged into Dateline NBC, where she contributed regularly both as anchor and correspondent. She remained with NBC News and the Today show for fifteen years until May 2006, when she departed to become the first solo female anchor of the CBS Evening News.

Throughout her time at NBC, Couric occasionally substituted for anchors such as Tom Brokaw on NBC Nightly News and hosted the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade from 1991 through 2005. She interviewed prominent U.S. presidents including Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush, alongside international leaders like former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. Her journalistic excellence earned her several accolades, including a Peabody Award for her series titled Confronting Colon Cancer.

Couric also hosted special news programs such as Everybody's Business: America's Children (1995) and entertainment specials like Legend to Legend Night: A Celebrity Cavalcade (1993) and Harry Potter: Behind the Magic (2001). Beginning with the 2000 Summer Olympics, she co-hosted Olympic opening ceremonies alongside Bob Costas.

On May 28, 2008, Couric made a brief return to Today with other leading network anchors to promote cancer awareness through the initiative Stand Up to Cancer. Additionally, she resumed co-hosting duties for a week in January 2017 to celebrate Matt Lauer's twentieth anniversary on the show.

CBS Evening News (2006–2011)

On April 5, 2006, Couric announced her departure from Today. CBS confirmed that she would take on the role of anchor and managing editor of CBS Evening News, while also contributing reports to 60 Minutes and anchoring prime-time specials. Her salary was reported at US$15 million per year, positioning her as the highest-paid journalist worldwide, comparable to Barbara Walters at ABC. Couric made her debut as anchor on September 5, 2006.

CBS invested heavily in promoting Couric’s arrival in an effort to rejuvenate its evening news broadcast; however, results were mixed. Despite initial viewer interest, CBS Evening News remained third in ratings behind both ABC World News and NBC Nightly News. While Couric improved ratings compared to her predecessor Bob Schieffer, ABC's Charles Gibson widened his lead.

Couric announced CBS News’s forecast for the 2008 U.S. presidential election. The program CBS Evening News with Katie Couric received Edward R. Murrow Awards for best newscast in both 2008 and 2009. In recognition of her broadcasting achievements, Couric was honored with the Emmy Governor's Award in 2009.

She conducted interviews with notable figures including President Barack Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former President George W. Bush, as well as influential global business leaders.

Couric spearheaded CBS News coverage of major political events such as the U.S. midterm elections in 2006 and 2010, the presidential election and conventions in 2008, along with reporting on significant occurrences like the 2010 Haiti earthquake, BP oil spill disaster, and the Egyptian Revolution of 2011. She anchored live from London during the Royal Wedding in 2011.

Until December 21, 2009, Couric held the distinction of being the only solo female evening news anchor in America before being succeeded by Diane Sawyer at ABC World News. Notably, Couric and Sawyer had previously competed while hosting Today and Good Morning America, respectively.

In early 2011, Couric revealed plans to exit CBS Evening News upon contract expiration. Her final broadcast took place on May 19, 2011.

60 Minutes (2006–2011)

During her tenure as a 60 Minutes correspondent, Couric contributed between eight and ten reports each year. She notably conducted the first interview with pilot Chesley Sullenberger following the "Miracle on the Hudson" incident. Additionally, her interviews included prominent individuals such as Valerie Plame, Robert Gates, and Michelle Rhee.

Palin interviews (2008)

In 2008, Couric carried out a series of widely viewed interviews with Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin. These sessions were broadcast multiple times prior to the U.S. presidential election and earned Couric the Walter Cronkite Award for Journalism Excellence. According to Steve Schmidt, senior strategist for McCain’s campaign, these interviews had a significant negative impact from a political campaign standpoint.

CBS Reports (2009–2011)

Couric spearheaded two significant CBS Reports projects aired across all CBS News outlets. The first, titled "CBS Reports: Children of the Recession," explored how the Great Recession affected children and received the Columbia School of Journalism's prestigious Alfred DuPont Award for Excellence in Journalism. The second series, "CBS Reports: Where America Stands" (2010), featured experienced correspondents analyzing critical challenges facing the United States over the next decade, drawing on data from the CBS News Polling Unit.

@katiecouric (2009–2011)

Couric hosted a weekly hour-long interview show on CBSNews.com. Her inaugural guest was Fox News Channel’s Glenn Beck. Other distinguished interviewees included former Vice President Al Gore, actor Hugh Jackman, singer Shakira, First Lady Michelle Obama, New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, pop artist Justin Bieber, actress Jane Lynch, talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, actor Daniel Radcliffe, Bill Gates, former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, Tea Party figure Michael Johns, NFL quarterback Drew Brees, and author Malcolm Gladwell.

ABC News (2011–2013)

Between 2011 and 2013, Couric served as a special correspondent for ABC News while incorporating this role into her talk show format. Her debut segment was an interview with Sarah Jessica Parker on Nightline. She co-anchored ABC's tenth anniversary broadcast commemorating the September 11 attacks alongside Diane Sawyer, Christiane Amanpour, Barbara Walters, Elizabeth Vargas, George Stephanopoulos, and Robin Roberts. Previously, Couric had anchored Today during the attacks and led CBS News’s fifth anniversary coverage of 9/11.

Couric also appeared as a guest co-host on The View and Live! with Regis and Kelly, conducted a primetime interview with Lady Gaga for A Very Gaga Thanksgiving, and hosted a special honoring Regis Philbin’s retirement following his 25-year career at ABC.

Following in Barbara Walters’s footsteps, Couric anchored several ABC and 20/20 specials. In 2011 she introduced an annual program titled The Year with Katie Couric, produced in partnership with People magazine. This special highlights major personalities and events influencing news, sports, and politics throughout the year—echoing Walters’s 10 Most Fascinating People. It also includes interviews with media experts offering perspectives on significant developments.

In April 2012, Couric temporarily replaced co-anchor Robin Roberts on ABC’s Good Morning America, marking her first return to morning news hosting since departing from Today.

Katie (2012–2014)

On June 6, 2011, ABC revealed that Couric had agreed to a groundbreaking US$40 million deal to lead a daytime talk show under Disney-ABC Domestic Television, set to premiere in September 2012; she also remained involved with ABC News content. The program's title, Katie, was announced on August 22, 2011, marking Couric’s second digital show venture following @katiecouric on the CBS Evening News. The inaugural episode was broadcast on September 10, 2012.

Couric incorporated ABC News personalities such as Christiane Amanpour, Deborah Roberts, and Diane Sawyer into Katie during significant news coverage. The series also welcomed entertainment figures from the domestic scene, including Whoopi Goldberg and Kelly Ripa.

Disney-ABC Domestic Television extended Katie for a second season in the fall of 2013. Nevertheless, by October 2013, the program faced cancellation risks due to disappointing ratings (with household averages of 1.7 in season one and 1.8 in season two) and unfavorable viewer feedback. In December 2013, Disney-ABC formally announced the show's cancellation. The last taping took place on June 12, 2014, and the final episode aired on July 30, 2014.

Yahoo! News (2014–2017)

In November 2013, Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer appointed Katie Couric as Global Anchor for Yahoo! News.[9]

By March 2015, Yahoo News broadened its collaboration with ABC News to include specials and feature segments, with Couric and Yahoo editors appearing regularly on Good Morning America. This enhanced partnership secured Couric a position as a special contributor at ABC News.

In her memoir Going There, Couric disclosed that she edited a 2016 interview with Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg by removing comments critical of NFL anthem protests to shield Ginsburg from potentially controversial remarks.

Following Verizon's acquisition of Yahoo! and its integration into Oath in June 2017, Couric ended her contract with Yahoo! News. She chose to work on a project-by-project basis while concentrating on growing her own production company.[10]

Katie Couric Media (2017–present)

Couric launched Katie Couric Media in 2017, producing her newsletter Wake Up Call and collaborating with iHeartMedia on her weekly podcast Next Question.[11][12][13]

Other work

Beyond journalism, Couric has appeared in various media roles including voicing news reporter "Katie Current" in Shark Tale, making cameo appearances in films such as Austin Powers in Goldmember, and guest-starring on television shows like Murphy Brown, Will & Grace, and Glee. She co-hosted NBC’s coverage of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade from 1991 through 2005 and earned the American Academy of Achievement’s Golden Plate Award in 2005. Additionally, she has delivered commencement addresses at institutions such as the University of Virginia, Randolph-Macon College, Princeton University, and Boston University.[14][15]

In partnership with designer Carmen Marc Valvo, she has promoted colorectal cancer awareness efforts and received an honorary Doctor of Science degree from Case Western Reserve University in 2010 recognizing her advocacy.[16] In 2016, she portrayed herself reenacting a 60 Minutes interview in the film Sully.

Couric is the author of two children’s books: The Brand New Kid (2000) and The Blue Ribbon Day (2004), both published by Doubleday. The Brand New Kid reached the top spot on the New York Times best seller list for children’s picture books and was adapted into a musical production in 2006. Her third book, The Best Advice I Ever Got: Lessons from Extraordinary Lives (2011), is an essay anthology featuring contributors like Michael Bloomberg and Queen Rania of Jordan; all proceeds benefit Scholarship America.[17]

In December 2013, Couric aired a contentious segment regarding the HPV vaccine that attracted criticism for presenting claims lacking scientific support. She later admitted focusing excessively on rare side effects while not emphasizing vaccine safety adequately.[18]

Throughout the decade, Couric executive produced documentaries addressing societal issues. In 2014, she narrated Fed Up, which examines the food industry’s role in obesity. In 2016, she executive produced and narrated Under the Gun, exploring gun violence and regulation; this film faced backlash over editing decisions resulting in a defamation lawsuit that was ultimately dismissed.[19][20]

In 2015, Katie Couric Media partnered with National Geographic to produce documentaries such as Gender Revolution (2017). She also executive produced Lifetime’s drama Flint (2017), centered on the Flint water crisis. In 2018, she hosted National Geographic’s docudrama series America Inside Out with Katie Couric.[21]

Couric holds memberships on both the Council on Foreign Relations and the Peabody Awards board of directors.[22]

In 2019, she served as executive producer for Netflix’s true crime miniseries Unbelievable. Following Alex Trebek’s passing, Couric acted as guest host for Jeopardy! during January 2021; her episodes were broadcast between March 8 and March 19.[23][24]

Public image

Couric earned the nickname "America's Sweetheart" largely because of her 15-year tenure as co-anchor on The Today Show. On May 12, 2003, she served as guest host on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, attracting an audience that was 45 percent larger than the typical viewership. She remains the sole guest host ever featured by Jay Leno on either The Tonight Show or his brief run of The Jay Leno Show. On that very day, Leno reciprocated by substituting for her on Today. Reports from CNN and the New York Daily News highlighted that production staff adjusted her desk to reveal her legs during interviews with American Idol judge Simon Cowell and actor Mike Myers.

Family and relationships

On June 10, 1989, Couric wed attorney John Paul "Jay" Monahan III. The couple had two daughters: Elinor Tully "Ellie" Monahan, born July 23, 1991, in Washington, D.C., and Caroline "Carrie," born January 5, 1996, in New York City. Her husband passed away at age 42 in 1998 due to colorectal cancer. In September 2013, after two years together, Couric became engaged to financier John Molner and they married privately at her Hamptons residence on June 21, 2014. Together, they appear in the web-based cooking series Full Plate with Katie & John hosted on the Sur La Table platform.

Her sister Emily Couric, who served as a Virginia Democratic state senator, died from pancreatic cancer at age 54 in 2001. In her eulogy, Couric expressed deep pride in being Emily’s sister. She has two additional siblings: Clara Couric Batchelor and John M. Couric Jr.

During a January 2021 episode of Real Time with Bill Maher, Couric revealed she is distantly related to William Henry Harrison, the ninth president of the United States.

Cancer and advocacy

On September 28, 2022, Couric announced that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer on June 21 of that year following a routine screening. She underwent surgery in July and started radiation therapy on September 7.

Following her first husband’s death from colon cancer, Couric became a leading advocate for colon cancer awareness. In March 2000, she underwent a live colonoscopy broadcasted on air; a 2003 study published in Archives of Internal Medicine linked this event to a notable rise in colonoscopy rates, an effect now known as the "Katie Couric effect." On October 7, 2005, during National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, she aired her own mammogram on the Today show to encourage breast cancer screening. Additionally, she actively supported the National Hockey League’s Hockey Fights Cancer initiative through public service announcements and voice-over work.

Couric received recognition at the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation’s fall gala in 2004 and was named Guest of Honor at the first American Cancer Society Discovery Ball for her leadership in promoting cancer awareness and early detection. In 2011, she was appointed Honorary National Chair for the National Parkinson Foundation’s Moving Day campaign, which raises awareness about Parkinson’s disease nationwide. Her father died in 2011 at age 90 due to complications related to Parkinson’s disease.

Bibliography

  • Katie Couric, The Brand New Kid, Doubleday, 2000, New York, ISBN 978-0385500302
  • Katie Couric, The Blue Ribbon Day, Doubleday, 2004, New York, ISBN 978-0385512923
  • Katie Couric, The Best Advice I Ever Got: Lessons From Extraordinary Lives, Random House, 2011, New York, ISBN 978-0812992779
  • Katie Couric, Going There, Little, Brown and Company, 2021, New York, ISBN 978-0316535861

See also

Sources

  • Edward Klein, Katie: The Real Story, Crown, New York, 2007, ISBN 978-0-307-35351-1
  • Sheila Weller (2015), The News Sorority: Diane Sawyer, Katie Couric, Christiane Amanpour—and the (Ongoing, Imperfect, Complicated) Triumph of Women in TV News
  • NBC News, April 26, 2011

External links

  1. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named Bloom
  2. ↑ Klein 2007, p. 15
  3. ↑ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2123: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  4. ↑ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2123: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  5. ↑ Klein 2007, p. 20
  6. ↑ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2123: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  7. ↑ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2123: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  8. ↑ Sheila Weller, The News Sorority (2015) pp. 93–110
  9. ↑ Couric’s debut occurred on January 13, 2014, featuring interviews with former United States Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and subsequently United States Secretary of State John Kerry.
  10. ↑ Reported departure in July 2017.
  11. ↑ About KCM
  12. ↑ Interview with journalism veteran Katie Couric
  13. ↑ Katie Couric Media and iHeartPodcasts’ acclaimed series "Next Question with Katie Couric" returns for its eleventh season
  14. ↑ Golden Plate recipients
  15. ↑ Commencement addresses
  16. ↑ Honorary degree and keynote address
  17. ↑ Children’s literature and essay collection
  18. ↑ HPV vaccine segment controversy
  19. ↑ Fed Up documentary details
  20. ↑ Under the Gun documentary and legal case
  21. ↑ Documentary projects and series hosting
  22. ↑ Board affiliations
  23. ↑ Unbelievable production credits
  24. ↑ Jeopardy! guest hosting details
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