McNamara moved from
Baltimore to
Westminster in elementary school. She graduated from
Westminster Senior High School and attended the
University of Missouri School of Journalism. While at Missouri, she reported for the
Columbia Missourian. Upon her graduation, McNamara wrote for
Ms. Magazine, then worked for
Whittle Communications. McNamara joined the
Los Angeles Times in 1991 as a features writer and editor. In 2009, she became the
Times' television critic. ==References==