Former Concordia journalism student Jacqueline Lisbona left for New York City on Aug. 10 to pursue a Master’s in Journalism at Columbia Journalism School. Just over a month later, the 22-year-old thought she saw one of her journalism idols on the street on Tuesday and did a double take. So Lisbona pulled out her cellphone and Googled a photo of Katie Couric. “As a journalist, you know, I have no shame,” she said. “What’s the worst that can happen if I run over and say hi and it’s not her? I will have just said hi to a stranger.” She then followed her reporter’s instinct, ran over to the woman, and asked for what any good journalist would ask for — confirmation. “‘Excuse me, but are you the famous journalist Katie Couric?’” she recalled asking. “I’m not famous, but I am Katie Couric,” the American journalist replied. And from there began a five-minute exchange on Canal Street with the former Today Show host and CBS Nightly News anchor who now runs her own multimedia production company, asking the young Montrealer from Côte Saint-Luc about herself, her family, and if she liked Columbia before heading off for lunch. “Honestly she was such a great and warm friendly human being. It was so nice to have met a really inspirational journalist and she was so kind,” Lisbona told CTV News. ”She offered to take a photo of me and I said, ‘Oh my God, my family’s going to freak out so could I have a video?’ And she said of course. And she had her arm around me and seriously she could not have been nicer.” Lisbona, who uses Instagram to highlight her love of food and travel among other things, posted the video of their chance meeting and had more than 9,000 views by the end of Wednesday. “I just wanted to share how amazing Katie was in person and I did not know how well the video would do because I have so many people reaching out to me,” she said. “She was so normal and friendly and kind of hugged and grabbed onto my arm. Such a gem of a human being and I aspire to be like her if hopefully I’m as successful as her one day.” Couric appeared to have given the journalism student a lesson that went far beyond journalism. As one of Lisbona’s Instagram followers said, “What a good omen!”
