Reggie Fowler

The journalists assembled at that news conference were handed a biographical fact sheet on Fowler, and it was subsequently found to contain a few inaccuracies. It claimed he had played in the Little League World Series, had a bachelor's degree in business administration and finance, and had played with the Cincinnati Bengals and the Canadian Football League's Calgary Stampeders. It asserted that his company was ranked eleventh on the Black Enterprise list of African American-owned firms in 2004. In reality, the "world series" was the name used for a Tucson all-star event for youth teams in which Fowler had played, and his undergraduate degree from the University of Wyoming had been in social work, not business. He had been released during training camp for the Bengals as well as the Canadian Football League tryout. Finally, his company was No. 11 only in the Black Enterprise Industrial/Service category, not in the overall rankings.

The press, especially in the Twin Cities, had a field day with the errors, and Fowler flew back to Minnesota to deal with the matter himself just four days later. He explained that the biography released had been a mere draft copy done by a Twin Cities public-relations firm he hired, and had not been ready for release; the rudimentary details had apparently been supplied by Spiral, Inc.'s Chandler headquarters. Fowler was quick to accept blame, however, and released a formal statement. "I realized that there was some confusion surrounding my background, and I wanted to make perfectly clear the facts of who I am and what I have done," it read, according to a Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service report. "I regret that a draft copy of my biography was issued, and I want to make sure the facts on my background are clear."