Katie Couric is using her time in self-isolation to spread the word on good hand hygiene amid the COVID-19 outbreak.
The 63-year-old journalist is at home under a self-imposed quarantine after she spent time with the head of New York Port Authority, Rick Cotton, just before he was diagnosed with coronavirus.
‘My personal PSA’ Katie tagged the video which sees her watching her hands to the song My Sharona.
PSA time: Katie Couric filmed a video to show people how to wash their hands amid the coronavirus outbreak. She did it to the song My Sharona
She mouths the lyrics to the catchy tune as she vigorously washes her hands at her kitchen sink.
Katie’s video was shared on the Twitter page Time To Wash Hands with the message: ‘This is @katiecouric. @katiecouric washes her hands for 20 seconds while singing My Sharona. Be like @katiecouric #timetowashhands’
The account aims to promote hand washing to fight COVID-19 by reminding followers to wash their hands every two hours.
Numerous celebrities are jumping on the trend in an effort to encourage social media users to be vigilant about washing their hands amid the global pandemic.
Mariah Carey posted a similar video alongside her children as they washed their hands to a song by Ol’ Dirty Bastard while Gloria Gaynor washed her hands to her hit I Will Survive.
Spread the word: The journalist is at home under a self-imposed quarantine after she spent time with the head of New York Port Authority, Rick Cotton, just before he was diagnosed with coronavirus
20 seconds: She mouths the lyrics to the catchy tune as she vigorously washes her hands at her kitchen sink
All done! Katie’s video was shared on the Twitter page Time To Wash Hands with the message: ‘This is @katiecouric. @katiecouric washes her hands for 20 seconds while singing My Sharona.
Meanwhile, Katie bowed to overwhelming pressure from her Twitter followers to stay home after coming into contact with sickened Rick Cotton.
Shared a newspaper article about the diagnosis of the executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey on Monday and tweeted: ‘Rick Cotton is an old friend of mine. In fact I just saw him on Saturday for the first time in a long time. Feel better Rick.’
Her fans reacted with horror to the television anchor’s revelation, urging her to self-quarantine.
In response, Katie clarified they she had only seen Cotton ‘briefly’, had not shook his hand, and said she had been advised she did not need to stay home.
She assured her fans: ‘OK people – thank you for your concern!! I have a few updates: So far I’ve talked to someone from @WHO who referred me to the @HealthNYGov which told me that it was not necessary to self-quarantine. This was also confirmed by my primary care physician.’
‘I’ll be working from home to be safe’: Kate Couric bowed to pressure from Twitter users to self-isolate after spending time with head of New York Port Authority just before he was diagnosed with coronavirus
The 63-year-old then explained: ‘My interaction was a 90-second conversation with an asymptomatic person and involved no physical contact. I am now quadruple checking with the CDC. But overall, the people I spoke to said to continue using common sense and good hygiene practices and if I start having symptoms or not feeling well I should go to my primary care doctor immediately.
‘Hopefully, this is helpful for anyone who deals with this in the future + I will keep you guys updated as soon as I have more info!’
Fans did not seem so convinced, with a barrage of tweets after her initial message, advising her to stay indoors.
Katie was urged to self-quarantine by Twitter users after revealing friend she spent time with was diagnosed with corona virus
‘Um….maybe time to self-quarantine Katie….’ one fan had written, while another shared a gif of people running for the door, titled ‘Katie’s co-workers now.’
‘Are you self-quarantined? Because that’s the thing to do,’ wrote another, summing up the views of many.
‘Sorry to say this but he was probably contagious at that point,’ and ‘see you in two weeks,’ were among the other responses.
‘Just talked to a @CDCgov official who said I’m very low risk given the duration and nature of contact#,’ she reassured followers.
She then added: ‘I will be working from home to be safe and make sure if I’m not feeling well I will go to the doctor. Will keep you posted.’
Update: In response, Katie clarified they had only seen each other briefly
In response to her fans, Katie at first said she had been advised she did not need to stay home
Reaction: Katie’s fans advised the journalist to self-quarantine