Porter first became a journalist at age 12 when she was hired as a weekly columnist for "The Patent Trader", a Westchester County newspaper chain. Years later, she served as a relief theatre critic for "The Times", and contributed media-related articles to "The Listener", "The Guardian", and "The Independent". In 1988 she became a film critic, joining The Critics' Circle and served for 10 years as London Editor for "Film Journal International", with supplementary pieces for "The Morning Star". She continues to provide online columns for "The London Progressive Journal" under the byline outRageous!