Andrea McCarren was WJLA-TV’s Special Projects Reporter until her dismissal on January 23, 2009 for financial reasons.[1]
McCarren was born and raised in Hartford, Connecticut and graduated cum laude from Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York and The London School of Economics and Political Science in England. She was awarded the KCBS-TV Fellowship in Los Angeles for graduate work at The University of Southern California School of Journalism.
She began her career as a researcher for CBS News in London. McCarren worked as a reporter, producer and news anchor in Savannah, Georgia, Wichita, Kansas, Miami, Florida and Portland, Oregon.
McCarren became a correspondent for NBC News, based in Washington, DC, where she filed reports for Nightly News and the Today Show.
She recently spent a year at Harvard University as a Nieman Fellow, one of 28 mid-career journalists selected from around the world. McCarren also taught two journalism courses at the Harvard Summer School, including the first broadcast journalism course in Harvard history.
McCarren then joined ABC News, where she served as a White House correspondent during the Clinton administration, traveling with the President on Air Force One. McCarren also filed frequent reports for ABC Radio and ABCNews.com.
McCarren joined WJLA in 2001 from ABC News as an investigative reporter on the "I-Team". Her work in local television has led to changes in state law, been shown in Congressional hearings and state legislative sessions, been used nationwide to train law enforcement and has even helped federal authorities capture a wanted fugitive.
In 2006, McCarren won the top regional honors from the Associated Press for her investigation of corruption in the Prince George's County, Maryland government. Also in 2006, she was awarded three SPJ Dateline awards for Excellence in Local Journalism. Her investigation of a security breach at a Virginia military base exposed a potential national security threat and prompted a federal manhunt and arrest. McCarren later landed an interview with the accused man, who confessed on camera to the crimes.
In 2007, McCarren was awarded two SPJ Dateline awards for Excellence in Local Journalism. Her work uncovered the embezzlement of hundreds of thousands of dollars by the international president of a nonprofit organization. Another report included an exclusive interview with the first federal agent to infiltrate the notorious MS-13 gang. She has traveled to El Salvador to document MS-13 gang activity and its impact on the Washington area.
McCarren is the recipient of numerous national and regional honors, including an IRE award (Investigative Reporters and Editors) and a Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Award. She has also earned six regional Emmys.
McCarren is married to Bill McCarren, the General Manager and Chief Operating Officer of the National Press Club. The couple has three children.