League of Denial

The NFL, Concussions and the Battle for Truth

By: Mark Fainaru-Wada, Steve Fainaru

Narrated by: David H. Lawrence XVII

Length: 14 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's summary

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A “meticulously documented and endlessly chilling” (The New York Times) exploration of the NFL’s decades-long attempt to deny and cover up mounting evidence connecting football and brain damage.

“A first-rate piece of reporting [that] adds crucial detail, texture, and news to the concussion story, which despite the NFL’s best efforts, isn’t going away.”—Time

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The Boston Globe, NPR

“Professional football players do not sustain frequent repetitive blows to the brain on a regular basis.” So concluded the National Football League in a December 2005 scientific paper on concussions in America’s most popular sport. That judgment, implausible even to a casual fan, also contradicted the opinion of a growing cadre of neuroscientists who worked in vain to convince the NFL that it was facing a deadly new scourge: chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a chronic brain disease that was driving an alarming number of players—including some of the all-time greats—to madness.

Everyone knows that football is violent and dangerous. But what the players who built the NFL into a $10 billion industry didn’t know—and what the league sought to shield from them—is that no amount of padding could protect the human brain from the force generated by modern football.

In League of Denial, award-winning ESPN investigative reporters Mark Fainaru-Wada and Steve Fainaru expose the public health crisis that emerged from the playing fields and examine how the league used its power and resources to attack independent scientists and elevate its own flawed research—a campaign with echoes of Big Tobacco’s fight to deny the connection between smoking and lung cancer. They chronicle the tragic fates of players like Hall of Fame Pittsburgh Steelers center Mike Webster, who was so disturbed at the time of his death he fantasized about shooting NFL executives, and former San Diego Chargers great Junior Seau, whose diseased brain became the target of a scientific battle between researchers and the NFL.

Based on exclusive interviews, previously undisclosed documents, and private e-mails, League of Denial is the story of what the NFL knew and when it knew it—questions at the heart of a crisis that threatens American football—and of the battle for the sport’s future.

©2013 Mark Fainaru-Wada and Steve Fainaru (P)2013 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Meticulously documented and endlessly chilling.” (The New York Times)

“The book should come with a warning label for football fans: Watching a game will never be the same after you read it. . . . [Fainaru-Wada and Fainaru] ask tough questions of the NFL without taking their conclu- sions too far.” (NPR)

“Engaging and well written . . . an informative, intriguing and sobering book about power and control. I recommend it strongly.” (Nate Jackson, The Washington Post)

Heartbreaking

Expert storyteller, David H LawrenceXVII, delivers a heart ache presentation of our hero’s, typical big corporate cover up, and shattered players and families......couldn’t turn it off, sick that it’s still happening today.....

Another Organization Stone Walls

What did you love best about League of Denial?

How detailed the story was about the Shenanigans the NFL pulled. Just unscrupulous.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I liked the Nigerian Doctor who gave the NFL hell. He is different from the nice guy depicted in the movie, which is also excellent.

What does David H. Lawrence XVII bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Excellent narration. However, the book is also necessary. Just too many names and details to keep straight by simply listening to the audio or seeing the movie.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Oh noooooo! Impossible. Too complicated.

Any additional comments?

I am not a football fan to begin with. Now I am really not a fan.

Fantastic, moving, eye opening. Great narration!

I never leave reviews but League of Denial was so well-written and compelling that I've been moved to review it in the hopes other people will also enjoy! Incredibly well-researched and put together in a compelling story. Your heart aches for Mike Webster and his family learning what they go through.

Great narration, David Lawrence does a great job with challenging medical material. Overall this book was a great listen- educational, moving, interesting and eye-opening. Highly recommend!

Wow. Great book!!!

Great book for any NFL fan, or sports fan in general. Touchy topic and this book gets deep into detail. I would 100% recommend this book.

A Salient Topic in the Sports Safety Discussion

The history and controversy presented herein will present one of the greatest struggles of the future of sports medicine. This book conveys the intensity and drama surrounding the concussion issue in so many American sports. It poses important questions and provides riveting history and information around the concussion culture. this is a must-read for anyone involved in the world of contact (collision) sports.

Shocking

This book starts with the story of Mike Webster. Any big football fan will know his sad story but the book goes into more detail and just breaks your heart for his family. I never thought I'd look at the NFL like I do the tobbacoo companies but if you read this book. Imsure you will also.

Overall, well worth the credit

I approached this book a bit different ( more knowledgeable) than most history books I order - that of being a trial lawyer for 30 years ( personal injury) in which cause of a medical condition ( including dementia-like conditions as causally linked to head trauma) was almost always the issue. It came as no surprise, therefore, to listen that CTE as linked to NFL play was hotly debated. BUT - although I did like the book; although the narration was excellent; and the authors did a very very good job in describing the players for us, their careers and the downturn some of them faced post NFL - their bias was a bit too pronounced. Not a lot, but not insignificant either. They implied throughout that those in favor of linking CTE to football were the good doctors, those which did not were the bad doctors. Listening with " a lawyers ear" ( and I acted for people against insurance companies throughout my career) I thought it was not as clear cut as the authors would have us believe, especially as the majority of NFL players do not develop these symptoms. I also agree with the first reviewer that it was difficult to keep track of which doctor, which opinion. That is not to say, however, that I did not like the audiobook. I did. It is worth the credit.. I found it very interesting, all parts, the whole discusson, especially, to repeat myself, when the player's lives were discussed. I will follow up and research further this topic CTE and the NFL ( starting with the show that " Frontline" did on the book, available via YouTube), which for me is a good sign the book is worth reading.

Very compelling

Loved the beginning Some of the stories are sad Some parts are repetitive Overall a great listen

Don't watch football much but this is compelling

Well organized book interspersing hard science with human interest. Narrator was excellent. Really delved into the history of the NFL coming to terms with concussions and liability. Thoroughly good listen for fan and non fan alike.

Long but good

Very much enjoyed listening to this book although at times it gets very long winded. The stories of all the players and the wide range of positions in ages they encompass make you realize how much this issue will plague the NFL for years and years to come. All the while with the NFL denying and failing to admit the product on the field causes any issues