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McCarthyism is the practice of making accusations of subversion or treason without proper regard for evidence. The term refers to U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy and has its origins in the period in the United States known as the Second Red Scare, lasting roughly from 1947 to 1956 and characterized by heightened political repression as well as a campaign spreading fear of Communist influence on American institutions and of espionage by Soviet agents.
What would become known as the McCarthy era began before McCarthy's term in 1953. Following the First Red Scare, president Truman signed in 1947 an executive order to screen federal employees for association with organizations deemed "Totalitarian, Fascist, Communist or subversive" or advocating "to alter the form of Government of the United States by unconstitutional means." In 1949 a high level State Department official was convicted of perjury in a case of espionage and the Soviet Union tested an atomic bomb, while the Korea War started the next year, raising tensions in the United States. In a speech in May 1950, McCarthy presented a list of members of the Communist Party working in the State Department, which attracted the press' attention, and the term appeared for the first time in a political cartoon by the Washington Post that same year. The term has taken on a broader meaning, describing the excesses of similar efforts. The term is also now used more generally to describe reckless, unsubstantiated accusations, as well as demagogic attacks on the character or patriotism of political adversaries.
During the McCarthy era, hundreds of Americans were accused of being communists or communist sympathizers and became the subject of aggressive investigations and questioning before government or private industry panels, committees and agencies. The primary targets of such suspicions were government employees, those in the entertainment industry, educators and labor union activists. Suspicions were often given credence despite inconclusive or questionable evidence, and the level of threat posed by a person's real or supposed leftist associations or beliefs was sometimes exaggerated. Many people suffered loss of employment or destruction of their careers; some even suffered imprisonment. Most of these punishments came about through trial verdicts later overturned, laws that were later declared unconstitutional, dismissals for reasons later declared illegal or actionable, or extra-legal procedures that would come into general disrepute.
The most notable examples of McCarthyism include the investigations made by Senator McCarthy himself; and the hearings conducted by the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC).

Source: Wikipedia