Aaron Kearney adds OAM to a long list of achievements

He added another one last week when the former Maitland Mercury journalist was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for services to the broadcast media.

Even by his lofty standards that's a highlight.

"I had an inkling, but then COVID came onto the scene and I had to wait from June to December to actually receive it," he said with a laugh.

And the irony is that being a radio presenter was the last thing on young Kearney's future jobs list.

"It's 100 per cent what I didn't want to be," the 49-year-old said. "That's because I had an ill conceived understanding of what it was.

"I thought talkback radio was shock jocks, people with big voices and bigger opinions based on small amounts of knowledge."

But after Prime TV shut, the budding sports journalist needed a wage and he started work at 2HD - "to their credit they more or less let me do what I wanted" - after which he migrated to the ABC in 2005.

And it was there he found a home. He started doing ABC Newcastle's Drive program and then Breakfast. He stayed on the morning shift for 11 years and, it needs to be said, was a natural. Ratings were through the roof.

"Back then, if you presented a compelling case that a story was worth doing, the ABC would back you all the way," he explained. "It was probably as far removed from shock jock as you could get."

It suited him down to the ground. He was good at talking to people, hearing their stories. Breakfast Kearney-style wasn't just idle chatter, but meaty discussions with a dollop of dry wit added.

His reputation grew, as did the trophy cabinet.

So let's cherry pick: he has been nominated for 30 major media awards, won a Walkley Award for Best Use of Media, and was nominated for a Best Radio Reporting Walkley for work covering devastating storms that hit eastern Australia in June, 2007.

In July 2011, he was awarded a Gold Medal at the World Radio Awards in New York for 'Andrew's Story, a documentary on a young paraplegic man.

Then he's somehow still managed to fit in his beloved sports commentary: he has covered Olympic and Commonwealth Games, FIFA and Rugby League World Cups.

He has made numerous highly acclaimed documentaries, and been recognised multiple times for articles he has written.

In short, the guy's an over-achiever for over-achievers.

And while his situation changed when he finished up with ABC Breakfast in 2015, he has been busier than ever.

First there was his Commentary for Good program which he started across the Pacific.

"Sport is uniquely positioned because it involves patriotism, enthusiasm and passion," he said. "It's a platform you don't get elsewhere, not in public speaking or parliament.

"So Commentary for Good was aimed mainly at women, but not exclusively, to give them a voice. I taught commentary to them, trained them, organised the equipment they'd need, basically gave them a pathway into sports commentary. We looked at social media training, and mobile journalism too.

"It meant they could call their local sporting events in their own language. It became a powerful platform for them, especially in places where women wouldn't normally get that kind of opportunity."

It's a concept that has been rolled out now across numerous countries.

It also meant last year alone he worked, at various times, in 22 countries.

But then, like a scene out of The Godfather, came an offer he couldn't refuse.

"The ABC was starting up a Pacific Disaster Preparedness Unit and wanted me to be part of it," he said.

"It was a role that talked exactly to my skill set. And when they said if we get this right, we'll definitely save lives, I was in.

"It also came at a time when a lot of my travel was curtailed because of COVID, so the timing worked out well too."

Which means, right now, he's involved in the ABC's International Division, liaising with foreign correspondents and reporters, to do a series aimed at helping people prepare for possible future disasters.

With climate change upon us, despite what anti-sciencers would have you believe, it's more important than ever.

"We'll do a series of programs that talks specifically to a various threat, whether it's tsunamis, or drought, or flooding, cyclones whatever. It's a really exciting project and something I'm really passionate about."

And if that's not enough, there's AKS Media International, the company he formed that keeps him busy looking after a string of international clients.

That's a lot to squeeze in. But for someone who has achieved so much, you can't help but feel this guy is only warming up.

Aaron Kearney, OAM ... On A Mission.

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