Brian Williams Apparently Tried To Blame His Lies On A Brain Tumor

Ever since "Nightly News" anchor Brian Williams was caught making some pretty major exaggerations in his news reports, some bizarre discoveries have been coming out surrounding the journalist's life.

A report in Vanity Fair quotes NBC execs, who discuss their experiences with BriWi, his lies and all of the skeletons in his closet.

One source tells Vanity Fair that Williams immediately insisted he must have suffered a brain tumor after being accused of lying in his reporting on Iraq in 2003.

An insider said,

He couldn't say the words 'I lied.' We could not force his mouth to form the words 'I lied.' He couldn't explain what had happened. [He said,] 'Did something happen to [my] head? Maybe I had a brain tumor, or something in my head?'

Brian Williams was the successor to Tom Brokaw, one of America's most famous and widely respected journalists, who helped establish NBC's nightly programs as one of the most prominent in the business.

One executive says,

I always felt he needed to jack up his stories because he was trying so hard to overcome his insecurities, and he had to follow Tom, which brought its own set of insecurities. He likes to sort of tell these grandiose tales... I just saw it as one of the quirks of his personality.

Many now think that Williams' fear of not being able to fill such powerful shoes may be why he often lied in his reporting.

In fact, in one instance, Williams even lied about being with Tom Brokaw in Germany as the Berlin Wall was taken down. In reality, Williams met up with Brokaw the next day.

I'm sorry, but I just see no validity in any of Williams' excuses. BriWi: You don't have a brain tumor, you're just really bad at telling lies.

Citations: The Inside Story of the Civil War For the Soul of NBC News (Vanity Fair)