Episode Details

Episode 059: Mark Fainaru-Wada – Investigative Reporter, Steroids, Barry Bonds, and Concussions

This was an extremely thought provoking conversation with Mark Fainaru-Wada. This is the first time I’ve ever had an investigative reporter on as a guest of The Learning Leader Show. The magnitude of the work that Mark has done is immense. We touched on a number of topics during this conversation from Chris Borland retiring to Cris Carter’s “Fall Guy” comments made at the NFL Rookie Symposium. It was a very enlightening an entertaining conversation.

Mark Fainaru-Wada is an investigative reporter for ESPN. With his colleague Lance Williams, he co-authored the New York Times best-seller “Game of Shadows — Barry Bonds, BALCO and the Steroids Scandal That Rocked Professional Sports.” He’s also written (along with his brother Steve Fainaru) “League Of Denial,” which reveals how the NFL, over a period of nearly two decades, sought to cover up and deny mounting evidence of the connection between football and brain damage.

Episode 059: Mark Fainaru-Wada – Investigative Reporter, Steroids, Barry Bonds, and Concussions

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The Learning Leader Show

“The scientist is not the person who gives the right answers; he’s the one who asks the right questions.” – Claude Levi-Strauss

Some Questions I Ask:

• What are common characteristics of people who lie and cheat that you have encountered?
• Why do people who are obviously guilty continually lie?
• What was your process for writing “Game Of Shadows?”
• You were told to “give up your sources or go to jail.” What affect did that statement have on your life?
• Why write the book “League of Denial” about the NFL?
• Would you allow your own children to play football?
• What is the future for the NFL?
• What could the NFL have been thinking by putting the Cris Carter “fall guy” statements on their website for years?

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• The amount of ego and narcissism he’s found in certain athletes who have cheated and lied
• How “Game of Shadows” grew from his reporting at the San Francisco Chronicle
• What happened to him and his family when he was told he would go to jail for not giving up his sources
• The great conversations he’s had with Chris Borland about his decision to retire from the NFL at such a young age
• About the ethics in reporting and why he would have reported the Cris Carter “fall guy” comments if he was in that room
• The next big plans he has for his career

“Give up your sources or you will go to jail.”

Continue Learning

• Read the Boston University Head Trauma Research: http://www.bu.edu/cte/
• Read: League of Denial: The NFL, Concussions, and the Battle for Truth
• Read: Game of Shadows: Barry Bonds, BALCO, and the Steroids Scandal that Rocked Professional Sports
• Follow Mark on Twitter: @markfwespn

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Episode 019: Chris Borland – Why He Walked Away From Millions Of Dollars

Episode 003: The Incredibly Interesting Story Of Maurice Clarett And How He Built A 6 Figure Income After Spending 4 Years In Prison

Episode 004: How Todd Wagner (and Mark Cuban) Sold Broadcast.com To Yahoo! For $5.7 Billion<