Karen Frances McCarthy (born 1971 in Dublin, Ireland) is an author, academic, former political journalist, and Spiritualist. Initially known for her work as an embedded war correspondent in Iraq and her reporting on U.S. politics, she later gained international attention for her transition into Spiritualism following a personal tragedy. Her doctoral research at the University of Birmingham, a member of the UK's Russell Group of research-intensive universities, explored the effects of cultural shifts in consciousness theory, postsecularism, and re-enchantment on contemporary American ghost literature. She is the sister of Irish Olympian Earl McCarthy.
Political writing
Journalism As a journalist, McCarthy began covering US politics for a variety of newspapers, including Irish Examiner. and the Riz Khan Show on Al Jazeera English. In 2007, she was an embedded reporter in Iraq. She was one of the first to write about Sunni Awakening Councils in Anbar Province, Al Qaeda HQ in Baqubah, for The Irish Times.
Books
The Other Irish In 2010, McCarthy's first book The Other Irish was published by Sterling Publishing Inc. For this work, she was named one of Ireland's top female broadcasters who have had an international impact. The book was supported by Ireland's Department of Foreign Affairs as part of the country's Reconciliation and Anti-Sectarian Fund as a cultural outreach project. The announcement of support for these projects was made on 28 November 2012. Announcing the funding, Ireland's Tánaiste (deputy prime minister) said the project was one of a number that would help address ongoing sectarian division and support reconciliation efforts in Northern Ireland. As part of the reconciliation effort, McCarthy travelled throughout Ireland, talking to various Protestant communities, including the Ulster Scots Agency, the Public Records Office of Northern Ireland, the Linen Hall Library, and the Monreagh Heritage Centre. It was also supported in the media by Ian Adamson, OBE, and William Humphrey DUP MLA in the Belfast Telegraph. She appeared on RTÉ's History Show with Miles Dungan, NPR with Kathleen Dunn, the BBC's Saturday Morning Radio Show with John Toal. The book was reviewed favourably by the Huffington Post, and by Prof. James Flannery of Emory College for the Irish America Magazine.
Spiritual writing
Journalism In 2011, McCarthy stopped covering politics and began to contribute features articles on spirituality, existential belief systems and philosophy of religion for The Irish Times, Salon, Huffington Post Religion Beliefnet, Belfast Media, and The Irish Voice.
Books
Till Death Don't Us Part In 2011, McCarthy had what she has described as an awakening. In 2020, she described the events leading up to this in a memoir Till Death Don't Us Part (White Crow Books, 2020), which was published by White Crow Books. It is described a true and transformational story of one woman's extraordinary journey from skepticism, through tragedy, into awakening to the knowledge that consciousness is not an emergent property of the brain and continues after brain death. The story recounts McCarthy's change in focus and career path, and how she moved toward Spiritualism and writing about spirituality as a result of these experiences. It was described by NYU Professor Ernest Rubinstein as "a story that doesn't just save us from our fear of death but also from the vague uneasiness and sense of disconnection that sometimes infect a life." It does this by emphasizing the existential implications of continued existence in this life and how joy and purpose come from having an open mind, an open heart, the courage to heal, and from being willing to embrace and share the compassion offered us from non-physical spaces. Feature article versions of the story appeared in the British magazine Psychic News and the politically progressive/liberal news magazine Salon.
Reception In the first week of its release, Till Death Don't Us Part was ranked No. 1 New Release in its category on Amazon. McCarthy's next book, Still Here, |url=http://karenfrancesmccarthy.com/books |accessdate=11 August 2026}}</ref>is forthcoming from White Crow Books in 2027. It was featured in various print media outlets, including Forbes, The Irish Times, The Irish Voice and Psychic News, and in the Life After Life blog of Raymond Moody. She appeared on various radio shows and podcasts, including New Thinking Allowed with Jeffrey Mishlove, New Realities TV with Alan Steinfeld, Seek Reality with Roberta Grimes, Psychic Matters with Ann Theato, and The Conan Doyle Casebook. She also gave lectures at the Edgar Cayce Center of New York and the Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Centre in Scotland. The book was described by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Juanita Wilson as "A gripping modern love story that transcends all boundaries." Peabody Award winning documentarian Alexandra Lipsitz was quoted as saying, "Her experiences made me believe in things I never thought I could believe in." Susan Shapiro, New York Times bestselling author of Unhooked & Byline Bible, wrote: "It's a fascinating transformational journey that challenges all our assumptions about death." Author Jennifer Belle wrote, "A news reporter and former diehard skeptic, McCarthy gives us an entertaining, impeccably researched, and brilliantly written page-turner about continuing love after life, that will move, amaze, and provide deep comfort with its glorious, inspiring, and deafening ring of truth." It also received favorable praise from Tricia J. Robertson, former President of the Society for Psychical Research, Minister David R Bruton MBA, President Spiritualists' National Union & Principal of the Arthur Findlay College, Nancy Eubel, former co-executive director of Association for Research and Enlightenment, and Victor and Wendy Zammit, co-authors of A Lawyer Presents the Evidence for the Afterlife.
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