Katie Couric reveals ‘freaky’ episode of amnesia: ‘I remember nothing’
Presenter and journalist Katie Couric has revealed she experienced transient global amnesia after a health scare she cannot even remember.
In a Substack article, Couric, 69, said she had lost “hours of [her] life” to what she coined “The Day I’ll Never Remember”.
Journalist Couric has fronted many American news shows including Today and 60 Minutes. Today/NBC
The Mayo Clinic described transient global amnesia (TGA) as a sudden episode of memory loss that typically lasts no more than 24 hours. The person is otherwise fully alert, but cannot form new memories or recall recent events.
“It was Saturday, June 27, 2026. But when I was asked the month, the year and who was president, I got them wrong. I wasn’t sure of the month. I thought it was 2024. And I believed Joe Biden was president,” Couric said.
The day started normally, with Couric taking a trip to a market and exploring the Aspen Ideas Festival in Colorado with her husband, John Molner, before heading to the Aspen Institute to speak on two panels.
Couric knew they grabbed a hot dog for lunch – but that was the last thing she could remember.
“I remember nothing from either panel ... I have no idea what we talked about, or what occurred when the panels ended,” she wrote.
Molner filled in some blanks, saying he noticed nothing unusual while his wife was on stage, but afterwards Couric was found “out of it”.
She was taken to hospital and thankfully, it was quickly confirmed she had not had a stroke – but there was still something clearly wrong.
“She reintroduced herself to the nurses every time they came into the room,” Molner said.
He said he felt like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day as she fired the same questions about what had happened and why she was in hospital at him over and over, unable to retain any information.
It was not until 9pm that Couric began to feel like herself again, and she could remember the night from then onwards.
Molner, right, had to fill in the blanks for his wife. Getty
But what happened between the hot dog lunch and then will always stay “a big, black hole”.
Couric was left baffled as to why it happened to her, but was grateful the “freaky occurrence” was not more serious.
“So ultimately, I’m relieved – even though several hours of a Saturday in June will always be missing for me,” she said.
