Emmy award-winnerand current President and CEO of bfac.com, Brad  McMullan provided students with first-hand experiences in handling interview situations Thursday in McComas Hall on Mississippi State University’s campus.
In April 2011, McMullan and former WAPT colleagues received an Edward R. Murrow Award and Emmy nomination. McMullan has interviewed a number of newsmakers including President Obama, former President George W. Bush, former Vice President Dick Cheney, former President George H. Bush, Sen. John McCain, J.C. Watts, Oliver North and Rudy Giuliani. 
 According to Apple and Google, bfac.com is also known as the number one mobile app publisher in Mississippi.  It has built apps for a number of companies and organizations including Chick-fil-A, Backyard Burger, 7-Eleven, AT&T, Ozarka Water, Pepsi and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
Heather Sophia, broadcast performance instructor at MSU, said her students were in for a surprise with McMullen’s visit, unaware his physical presence would follow the clip of his various anchoring and interview sessions. 
“They didn’t know about his visitation yet,” Sophia said. “I decided showing them a video clip of McMullan handling an interview like a champ and allowing him, to come describe his experiences after would be a great thing for the students. I’ve learned a lot from him and he is a great mentor in the business.”
Good work ethic and loyalty are two qualities Sophia said McMullen has passed to her.
“If you have good work ethic you can do whatever job you want,” she said. “He has taught me how to handle situations no matter the circumstance. You can feel his passion, and it motivates you to want to strive and work hard like him.”
During McMullan’s discussion with the class, he said remaining grounded in personal beliefs, family and friends assisted in keeping him focused throughout his career.
“You have to think of your job as a blessing,” McMullan said. “The world is a dark, dark place. God calls for us to be a light in the world.”
After explaining  qualities good journalists are to possess, McMullan said establishing rapport and treating people as one would want to be treated is of great importance.
“If Oprah Winfrey was to come on an ABC show, she would instantly have 15 million views,” he said. “Its not because she was on ABC, but because people love her. You’ve got to get people to like you.”
Upon the experience of meeting the award-winning anchor, Sophia said she hopes students have gained insight into correctly handling bad interview situations.
“We’ve seen viral video after viral video and have watched people either lose their temper or simply fail at maintaining good ethics during interviews,” she said. “Hopefully students have wrapped their brains around how to remain calm during different interviews, whether good or bad.”
Sophia said McMullan’s shared experiences with students will hopefully provide them with better insight in conducting interviews.
“Listening to me talk about it is one thing, but hearing it from someone else can help inform as well,” she said. “I hope students learn that you have to be mobile and able to build relationships with people. It will set you apart from everyone else.”