She was a news anchor for WFAA-TV in Dallas, Texas, from 1989 to 1991 before becoming one of the original anchors, along with Aaron Brown, of ABC News' World News Now when the show launched in 1992. McRee left the show in 1993 to serve as a host for Good Morning America Sunday. She then moved to Los Angeles, California, in 1994 to work as an anchor for KABC-TV.

In 1997, she was hired to replace Joan Lunden as co-host of Good Morning America. She then was paired with Kevin Newman after Charles Gibson left the show in 1998. However, Good Morning America, which had been struggling in the ratings, continued to perform poorly, and both she and Newman were replaced in 1999.

From 2004 to 2007, McRee was a host and correspondent for California Connected, a TV news magazine that aired on 12 PBS stations in California. During McRee's tenure, ratings improved 43% in her last year. The program was canceled due to a lack of funding.