The Dropout

The Dropout

Money. Romance. Tragedy. Deception. The story of Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos is an unbelievable tale of ambition and fame gone terribly wrong. How did the world’s youngest self-made female billionaire lose it all in the blink of an eye? How did the woman once heralded as “the next Steve Jobs” find herself facing criminal charges — to which she pleaded not guilty — and up to decades in prison? How did her technology, meant to revolutionize health care, potentially put millions of patients at risk? And how did so many smart people get it so wrong along the way? ABC News chief business, technology and economics correspondent Rebecca Jarvis, along with producers Taylor Dunn and Victoria Thompson, take listeners on a journey that includes a multi-year investigation. You'll hear exclusive interviews with former employees, investors, and patients, and for the first-time, the never-before-aired deposition testimony of Elizabeth Holmes, and those at the center of this story. Then, go inside the courtroom as 12 jurors decide the fate of the Theranos founder; three years after she was first charged, we find out how this saga finally ends.

Episodes

October 5, 2023 3 mins
For decades, Black baseball players were excluded from the major leagues and forced to create their own space: the Negro Leagues. In the new season of ABC Audio's award-winning podcast "Reclaimed," Vanessa Ivy Rose, granddaughter of Negro Leagues star Norman “Turkey” Stearnes, brings us on a quest to excavate his story and those of other Black players who were shut out of the majors, a legacy that still haunts the sport. Check out ...
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It began as a weekend of football, parties, late-night food and good friends -- a normal Saturday night in the college town of Moscow, Idaho. But Sunday morning, four University of Idaho students are found stabbed to death in their beds. Through friends, witnesses, video surveillance and social media footage, we get to know who the victims were and reconstruct their final hours. Presenting the first episode of the new true-crime po...
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Follow the new true crime podcast from ABC News, "The King Road Killings: An Idaho Murder Mystery," to hear the full five-part series, debuting June 7 on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and other major podcast platforms. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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March 27, 2023 32 mins
In June 1962, a woman opens the door to a stranger. What happens next will shock the country and haunt the streets of Boston for years to come. Sixty years later, the story of the Boston Strangler still has a hold on the public imagination. The new ABC Audio podcast, "Truth and Lies: The Boston Strangler," retraces the tragic fate of the victims and explores why a killer’s confession never closed this decades-old case. "Truth and L...
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Sixty years later, the story of the Boston Strangler still has a hold on the public imagination. The new ABC Audio podcast, "Truth and Lies: The Boston Strangler," retraces the tragic fate of the victims and explores why a killer’s confession never closed this decades-old case. "Truth and Lies: The Boston Strangler" -- a new three-part series, available on Apple Podcasts (https://apple.co/3wgRdzb), Spotify (https://spoti.fi/3XFQm6X...
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Today we bring you Ep. 1 of "Truth and Lies: The Informant," a new five-part series from ABC Audio that tells the remarkable story of an ordinary man who risked his life as an FBI informant to stop what would've been one of the worst terrorist attacks in U.S. history. Follow along and listen to the next episode right now on Apple Podcasts (https://apple.co/3wgRdzb), Spotify (https://spoti.fi/3XFQm6X), Amazon Music (https://amzn.to/...
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Check out "Truth and Lies: The Informant" from our colleagues at ABC Audio, a remarkable story of an ordinary man who risked his life as an FBI informant to stop what would've been one of the worst terrorist attacks in U.S. history. A new five-part series, available on Apple Podcasts (https://apple.co/3wgRdzb), Spotify (https://spoti.fi/3XFQm6X), Amazon Music (https://amzn.to/3ksWvFj), or wherever you're listening now. Learn more a...
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November 19, 2022 8 mins
In a special bonus episode of "The Dropout: Elizabeth Holmes on Trial," we break down what happened during Holmes' sentencing hearing and what is next for the once-lauded Theranos founder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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August 11, 2022 48 mins
Amanda Seyfried, the lead actress of Hulu’s “The Dropout” and the show’s creator and showrunner Liz Meriwether join host Rebecca Jarvis for a wide-ranging conversation about the making of the Hulu limited series based on the ABC News podcast. Seyfried has been nominated for an Emmy in the category of Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for her portrayal of Elizabeth Holmes, one of six nominations for ...
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July 8, 2022 6 mins
Rebecca Jarvis sits down with Brad Mielke, host of ABC News’ “Start Here” podcast to talk about the conviction of former Theranos president Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani. Follow “Start Here” on Apple Podcasts (https://apple.co/2maaMIF), Spotify (https://spoti.fi/3nNbcBC), or wherever you listen to get the day’s top headlines every morning. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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The new Hulu limited series based on this podcast and starring Oscar-nominee Amanda Seyfried as Elizabeth Holmes is out now. And in case you missed 20/20’s behind-the-scenes look at the show, we wanted to drop it in this feed, so you can listen now. You’ll hear from the stars of the Hulu series and a member of the jury that convicted Elizabeth. And be sure to follow the 20/20 podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you're l...
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January 5, 2022 48 mins
Three years after Elizabeth Holmes was charged with 11 counts of fraud, the verdict we’ve all been waiting for is finally in. After seven days and over 50 hours of deliberation, the 12 members of the jury -- one of whom gave us details that you’ll hear for the first time on this podcast -- found Holmes guilty on four counts. They were hung on an additional three. How did they reach these conclusions? And what happens next? What wil...
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December 21, 2021 76 mins
More than three months, 32 witnesses and three juror dismissals after the criminal trial of Elizabeth Holmes began, attorneys for the prosecution and defense had the chance to make their final appeals with closing arguments. Who presented the most compelling case? What resonated most with the eight men and four women of the jury? Whatever the case, the fate of Elizabeth Holmes could be days away from being decided. Learn more about...
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December 14, 2021 57 mins
The testimony of Elizabeth Holmes continues this week, finally concluding after seven days. And in a surprising move, the defense calls no further witnesses, resting its case. So after three months and dozens of witnesses, who came out on top? Will the defense strategy pay off? Soon, both sides will have one last shot to make a case in closing arguments before 12 jurors decide the fate of Elizabeth Holmes.  Learn more about your ad...
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December 7, 2021 74 mins
This week, the most jaw-dropping testimony in this trial yet. Elizabeth Holmes fights back tears telling the court she was raped when she was at Stanford and claims she was in an emotional and physically abusive relationship with her former boyfriend and Theranos COO Sunny Balwani, who firmly denies all allegations. Plus, the government begins its cross-examination, and while Elizabeth Holmes seemed to be able to recall her life in...
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November 30, 2021 53 mins
This week, Elizabeth Holmes returns to the stand, presenting herself as a confident CEO with a noble mission who also naively took experts at their word. She meticulously details how she built her business -- even admitting to having doctored those pharmaceutical documents -- but implies over and over again that she relied on information given to her by scientists, doctors and board members to solidify her understanding of where he...
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November 23, 2021 64 mins
In a monumental week in the trial of United States v. Elizabeth A. Holmes, the prosecution introduced its final week of witnesses before resting its case. Among them, a patient who received troubling results from a Theranos HIV test and a journalist whose damaging interviews with Elizabeth were played for the first time in court. And in a literal final-hour shocker, the defense called Elizabeth Holmes to the stand. Did the governme...
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November 16, 2021 46 mins
In this episode, we hear from two Theranos lab directors -- one who never met Elizabeth or stepped foot into the company’s lab, another who ultimately voided more than 50,000 Theranos tests after a damning government inspection. And we hear from an irate investor who says Elizabeth Holmes cut off communication with him when he asked for basic information about the company. Plus, 10 weeks into the trial, with only 24 witnesses out o...
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November 9, 2021 41 mins
Nine weeks into the criminal trial of Elizabeth Holmes, we’ve heard from dozens of witnesses -- Elizabeth’s colleagues, board members, investors, clients, scientists, accountants and corporate executives. It's impossible not to feel the repetition. We learn that a fake Pfizer memo wasn’t the only document Theranos falsified, and we’re introduced to a man with deep connections to many of the central players in Elizabeth’s orbit. Pat...
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November 2, 2021 45 mins
This week, we hear from high-profile companies and individuals who invested millions of dollars into Theranos, the prosecution reiterating that these investments were made on the basis of what they say was a pattern of misinformation, exaggeration and outright lies coming from Elizabeth Holmes herself. And we hear from a Pfizer scientist who speaks to the supposedly doctored Pfizer document that Theranos showed investors to help lu...
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