Irish journalist Karen Coleman is one of Ireland's finest broadcasters and commentators and one of our most experienced reporters of Irish and international affairs. An award-winning journalist, Karen broadcasts for both radio and television. She also writes regular articles for newspapers and magazines.

A former BBC war correspondent, Karen presents the Wide Angle radio show on Ireland's talk radio station - Newstalk106-108 every Sunday morning. Described by the Irish Independent as "one of the finest shows on Irish radio" the Wide Angle's lively mix of panel discussions, reports and interviews on Irish and International affairs makes it one of the most dynamic shows on Irish radio.

Karen's television work includes a series of investigative programmes for TV3. In June 2008, she broadcast a one-hour programme on the sex trade in Ireland. "Undercover Ireland –The Sex trade" showed how prostitution has exploded in Ireland over the last decade.

In November 2008, Karen produced and presented a 3-part series on the economy for TV3. "Crunch Time" took a hard-hitting look at how the Irish economy has gone from boom to bust. It investigated the fallout of the property collapse, the fragility of Irish jobs and the high costs of goods and services in Ireland.

According to the Irish Times, Karen's "articulate tramp over the deflated property balloon made for compelling viewing".

Karen has one of the most impressive contacts lists in Irish broadcasting. From prime ministers and presidents to Nobel peace-prize winners and rock stars, she has interviewed some of the world's most thought-provoking people of our age.

Guests of Karen's have included Jesse Jackson, Samantha Power, Elisabeth Eisenhower, US Senator Trent Lott, Hans-Gert Pettering, Seymour Hersh, Malcolm Gladwell, Sidney Blumenthal, Christopher Hitchens, Richard Dawkins, Shirin Ebadi, Mohamed ElBaradei, Hans Blix, Javier Solana, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Paul Rusesabagina and Ayaan Hirsi Ali.

Born and reared on a farm in County Cork, Karen's considerable career has taken her from the troubled streets of Belfast to war-torn Sarajevo and the Gaza Strip. She has dodged bullets in frontlines, covered dangerous riots in Indonesia, been beaten up by angry Serbs, come under mortar fire in Israel, robbed of all of her belongings and witnessed some of mankind's most cruel and inspiring acts.

Karen began her broadcasting career with RTE in 1990 after graduating from UCD and DCU. A curiosity to find out more about the troubles in Northern Ireland prompted her to move to Belfast where she began her work with the BBC. She then moved to BBC Scotland where she worked as a radio and television producer and reporter.

When the war in Yugoslavia broke out in the 1990s, Karen was determined to cover this horrific conflict on Europe's doorsteps. She was headhunted by the United Nations to work as a television director with UNTV in Croatia in 1995. Karen then began reporting for the BBC following NATO's assumption of military responsibilities from the UN after the Dayton Peace Agreement was forged in1995. She went on to spend the following three years reporting from the Balkans including the outbreak of war in Kosovo in 1997/98.

After an action-packed stint abroad, Karen returned to Ireland in 1999. Since then, she has worked on assignments all over the world. She is particularly acclaimed for her work in the Middle East where she has made several documentaries on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict and on the effects of the Israeli security barrier in the West Bank. In 2002, Karen was asked to become the presenter of Newstalk's flagship weekend current affairs radio show, the Wide Angle, when the station was originally set up in 2002.

Apart from her broadcasting work, Karen writes regular articles for newspapers and magazines. Her articles have been published in the Irish Times, the Sunday Tribune, the Irish Independent, the Sunday Business Post, the Sunday Independent, Business and Finance and the Irish Mail on Sunday. Her television appearances have included the RTE Late Late Show, Questions and Answers, Seoige/O'Shea, Ireland AM-TV3 and TV3 News.