MediaDiet: Brendon McKeon
Brendon McKeon is a motor racing tragic hampered by Sydney traffic.
A cyclist. A French student. A man grieving Richard Glover’s radio slot.
HR superstar (and occasional SKMG Head of P&C) Brendon McKeon takes us through a week of screen time, streaming services, and secondhand bike browsing for our seventeenth issue of COMMPRESS: MediaDiet.
Between early morning Duolingo sessions and late-night Breaking Bad rewatches, Brendon’s media consumption is a lesson in balance – of the analog, the digital, and the rescue dog who demands both.
Read on for Spotify rituals, group chat newsrooms, and a Google search we can’t stop thinking about: “AI turn dog into human”.
Wake up
After a few years of conditioning, I naturally wake up a bit before 5.30am to take my dear rescue greyhound, Oliver, for his morning walk. Oliver picks a different path each morning, and looks back to make sure I’m paying attention throughout our walk, so I balance checking my emails, scrolling Instagram and digesting news alerts with making sure he isn’t leering at me for not being “present” with him. I also need to watch out for low-hanging branches and other walkers so I can’t be on the phone too much!
When I get home I normally stretch for a few moments, and as of this year I’ve been doing a few lessons of French on Duolingo each morning. I’m pas très bon but it’s nice to start the day with a bit of mental stimulation. On days when I don’t go into the office, I love to go for a ride; cycling has always been my escape, a little mindful space to take in the surroundings and be really present; also important given how hectic Sydney roads can be!
Morning
I have a 45 minute or so drive to the office which is always done with ABC 702. Whenever I’ve had to drive to work I’ve always listened to AM radio, and have always developed fierce loyalty to the presenters (I always struggle with any change). Radio keeps me up-to-date with what’s happening in the news, some curve ball content I wouldn’t get otherwise (from flowers to financial markets) and some of the suggestions of what’s on in and around town.
During the work day it’s hard to get too much time outside of meetings to do much scrolling. I will ping back friends on WhatsApp, Insta or FB, and generally have a quick little scroll of Facebook Marketplace for any second hand bikes, guitars or cars – the algorithm knows me so well!
I do listen to music throughout the day – I’ve done it for so long that I am conditioned to have it in my ear to focus. I either listen to Spotify or on YouTube, which is much better for finding obscure songs not on Spotify, like this gem from The White Lotus, this forgotten Australian earworm or this all time Northern Soul classic.
Afternoon
In breaks during the arvo, I’ll always check a few of the news websites on what’s happening. My group chats are usually the quickest to break news to me and each group serves a slightly different, yet important purpose: there is one on politics and events, one for sport, one on Facebook Marketplace buys, and one on ridiculous reels across Insta.
Given my obsession with motor racing I also check in on Speedcafe a few times a day and watch any racing stories on YouTube. I’m pretty sure my intense motor racing knowledge is my most useless asset. And I've been watching some internal videos on Gemini and writing prompts to build my (admittedly weak) AI skills.
Evening
Given my inability to deal with change, I’m still not fully over Richard Glover leaving ABC radio last year, so I tend to listen to Spotify on the way home – if I’m not making calls to people to round out work, that is. I always like to hear new music so normally listen to my Discover Weekly Playlist, or the Double J Best New Playlist. But if I’m spent, it’s important to seek comfort, so I’ll turn to old favourites to decompress (as much as you can in Sydney traffic!).
My wife and I will always have a series we’re watching over the evening; after finishing Severance and The White Lotus, we’ve gone back in time to Breaking Bad. We have way too many streaming services (seven, in fact) and we really should dial that back.
I did notice after we were done with Severance and The White Lotus how significantly my Instagram algorithm had changed. There were so many conspiracy theories and behind-the-scenes posts flooding my feed. They’ve picked me!
Brendon’s Picks & Recs
SCREEN TIME: I’ve been averaging a bit over three hours, with about 300 notifications a day. That’s the killer; it pings and I pick it up most of the time!
SUBSCRIBED TO: I still get Motorsport Magazine delivered each month. Am I the first MediaDieter to still have a magazine subscription?
SOMETHING I WANT YOU TO LISTEN TO: Our old car only has a radio and CD player, so I’ve had the old CD wallet out going through some favourites, which reminded me how great it is to listen to a record end to end. This is still a superb listen from start to finish.
SOMETHING I WANT YOU TO READ: I’m watching the adaptation of my favourite book, The Narrow Road to the Deep North. I’ve found it strange to see the visual representation of something I’ve read a few times; some bits are completely aligned but others feel a bit jarring.
AN UNEXPECTED GOOGLE SEARCH: AI turn dog into human. (Oliver is a handsome fella!)
INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT I’M LOVING RIGHT NOW: Being a cycling tragic, I loved cyclingimages which shows the true beauty of cycling.
A LINK WORTH FORWARDING: I’m a lifelong fan of Roy & HG, no matter what the medium, but this was a high water mark.