Carlos Lozada wrote in The Washington Post that, McGrory is what you get when proximity to power, keen observation skills, painstaking reporting, a judgmental streak and passionate liberalism coalesce in a singularly talented writer — one whose abilities are matched by the times.

[2]She was born in the Roslindale neighborhood of Boston to Edward and Mary McGrory, a tight-knit Irish Catholic family.

[3] In 1947, she was hired by The Washington Star, where she began her career as a journalist, a path she was inspired to take after reading Jane Arden comic strips.

"[4] McGrory was assigned by the Star to travel with Robert F. Kennedy during his ill-fated 1968 presidential campaign and became close to his wife Ethel at the time.

In 1985, McGrory received the Elijah Parish Lovejoy Award as well as an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Colby College.