The Dropout

by ABC News
23,395
True Crime #150

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.

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Recent Reviews
  • Cinnamonpumpkinface
    Really informative and interesting
    I am loving this podcast. Giving lots of a Scamanda vibes, and I love it!
  • Silvapain
    Like a Good Neighbor, Walk Away
    The show was great, and then they flooded it with ads for other shows. Completely turned me sour on the whole thing.
  • whenisayyou for scratch
    Amazing!!!
    This is an amazing podcast!!
  • Halo69
    LOTS of Filler
    I saw a study recently that showed women typically speak about 7000 words a day. Men - 2000 words. This podcast supports that finding. This was produced by all women and many pieces of information were repeated 3-4 times. Every time it happened, I would just smile and shake my head. Couldn’t finish it. I’m hoping Bad Blood is better.
  • Allison B 21
    First part great
    The first part of the series was amazing. Very engaging. But once they get to the trial it’s very repetitive I couldn’t listen to the whole thing.
  • JulianZ13
    Good but gets old
    The first season is good, after that, it feels like every other audio clip was something reused from season one. By the end I felt sure I had heard certain clips dozens of times. It was distracting and made it feel way more drawn out than it had to be.
  • Simy2006
    Riveting podcast
    This is one of my absolute favorite podcasts. The topic was well covered, Jarvis is an excellent journalist and the diversity of people in the case interviewed was great. I really enjoyed it. The only weak parts were with attorney Caroline Polisi. I’m not sure how she has managed to be so successful, her predictions and opinions were wrong at every turn- almost comically and she had an annoying tick of laughing when talking about things that weren’t funny. Sort of strange. The other attorneys interviewed were great.
  • Bellamammal
    Nice deep dive
    Thought I knew most everything there was to know about this reprehensible scam/ scammer. This outstanding coverage brings the peripheral players into crisp focus. An important lesson with a handful of true heroes, this.
  • haileysgarden
    Follow up seasons are repetitive
    Continually quotes and reuses audio already used in first season. Seems like a lot of the episodes after the first season are completely unnecessary. However, first season is good. Just don’t expect to learn anything new.
  • LoriBudski
    Interesting story but…,
    Interesting story, but the podcast was extremely redundant and the music was extremely distracting and obnoxious in my opinion. I understand that you’re trying to extend the series and but hearing the same things over and over and over but it drew attention from the great reporting.
  • Drosey36
    Interesting but SO REPETITIVE
    Great story but they couldn’t afford an editor or just milked it to fill space generate ad revenue??
  • Faux0Security
    Bait and switch.
    This isn’t about the case they purport to cover. They are trying to trick me into listening to George snuffleupagus
  • Leann4194
    Story is told well
    I first came across the drop-out on Hulu and was intrigued. I ended up watching the series and then finding the podcast. This is very well done and kept my attention. Great reporting!
  • fc8tgb
    No love for Sunny?
    Was looking forward to a “Sunny gets sentenced” minisode…
  • BeckyJ_124
    So many commercials
    Great story, good reporting, but So. Many. Commercials.
  • d00dles4science
    One of the best podcasts ever
    Enthralling narrative of the Theranos case! Compelling, unbiased, thoroughly researched, very thought provoking journalism that provides some insightful clarity on a pretty complicated saga. I hope it continues to follow everyone involved- it’s kind of hard not to be drawn into this story that is so fascinating even on its own. Love her or hate her, Elizabeth has become an icon / cult leader. Being from Northern California myself, I found the “psychology” of Silicon Valley entrepreneurs extremely interesting. It is kinda sad, though, how Elizabeth has drawn so much attention away from the businesswomen, medical scientists, and young people who are (successfully) making their own remarkable breakthroughs every day! I admit I’ll probably listen to this again though, it’s a great podcast 👌 Thanks y’all for DOING it rather than just TRYing (lol)
  • Ankur2024
    Theranos
    Thanks for this. I was the project manager working for Walgreens and assigned to manage the Theranos project. What a mess.
  • CindyLightbourne
    Excellent podcast. Now you need to do FTX
    You need to do FTX. You all would do an amazing job
  • ncnole_mom
    Highly recommend
    Superior podcast. Highly recommend.
  • Erossica
    Interesting Listen
    Crazy ride and a great listen.
  • rytdnn
    Sociopath
    Literally obsessed with this story. So well documented. Elizabeth is a true sociopath. Zero remorse or empathy toward patients, and even an employee who committed suicide! disgusting human being.
  • see yo hnvf
    Good
    Good know words it’s that good
  • kpetwi
    Interesting!
    This was very interesting to listen to. I’d been barely aware of Theranos and Elizabeth but got hooked when I checked into the details for the Dropout series on TV. I think everyone involved here did a nice job pulling as much detail to present as possible..in particular the personal stories from the lab directors wife and the whistleblowers. Can’t wait for the sentencing.
  • BugsNeedToBeFixed!
    Fascinating Story
    Rebecca Jarvis and the team documented the trial of Elizabeth in detail. The podcast provided professional coverage from the points from all the personnel being affected : employees, investors, and patients. Must listen podcast if you’re interested in the trial of Elizabeth Holmes!
  • Jeff in thai
    “Episodes Unavailable”
    I went to go listen to some more and most the episodes say episodes available. After about five times of seeing this I decide to move on.
  • HUNGERGAMES_FAN
    😩
    Bah
  • oilfield conservative
    Absolutely Intriguing
    Rebecca Jarvis and the team did an excellent job with this podcast and it’s worth listening to every episode from the beginning. I have not been this consumed with a podcast since listening to Raven 23, which is a must listen as well.
  • BlindNotBroken84
    Love it
    Great podcast. Binged it on my move to Tennessee.
  • Schoncher
    Too long and repetitive
    I deleted this 1/3 of the way through season 2. Everything was so repetitive that I just felt like 45 mins of an episode delivered only a few minutes of content. Turned into way too much of a 20/20 style teasers aren’t that worth it after all. Good luck.
  • CE201355
    Love it
    Amazing and riveting way to tell the story. I’ve watched the Hulu series already and STILL am hanging on every word
  • TahoeSteph
    Gripped
    Such great journalism!
  • Happy Girl Mom
    Storytelling I Can Trust
    I’ve been wanting to find out about the Theranos rise and fall. But there’s so much out there now. It’s overwhelming. When I came across this podcast from ABC news I was thrilled. Here’s a name I know and trust to tell me the real story. It is a super fun story to listen to and easy enough to follow that I can listen while I work. Fantastic!
  • swingmaster73
    The absolute best
    This podcast, which I began to listen to after watching both “The Inventor” and the movie “dropout” is absolutely one of the best podcasts I’ve ever listened to. Giving more details then either the documentary or the mini-series, it is a fascinating account of unconscionable hubris and egomania coupled with an elaborate and secretive plan which resulted in the loss of money by investors, the loss of the confidence of the tech world, and the destruction of the company that so many thought would do so much good. We still don’t know the end of the story and I can’t wait for the final conclusion detailing the punishment imposed by our legal system.
  • Barbara Allison 01
    Excellent!
    Great reporting. Fascinating!
  • litterbud
    The Dropout
    Unbelievable, very well done!
  • MolliI
    Rebecca does it again!
    I really enjoy Rebecca Jarvis’ reporting for its clarity, accuracy and depth and The Dropout is no exception. This podcast is interesting and informative. I love that she gives the perspective of those directly involved as opposed to her own opinion.
  • B'sMom1
    Where’s the Sunny Updates
    I lived getting the updates on Elizabeth’s trial. Byt it’s incomplete without knowing what’s happening with Sunny’s trial. I can’t give you five stars because I feel like you dropped the ball.
  • Reefdog25
    Amazing Podcast!
    I absolutely loved this podcast - where’s the Sunny Balwani update?!
  • bybuck
    better than court tv
    more informative and cogent. cuts to the chase while leaving no stone unturned.
  • Clydette67
    Excellent Podcast
    I really enjoyed listening to this & it was reported properly. I am now watching the Hulu series feature from this podcast but while waiting for the next episode I started to watch “The Bleeding Edge” on Netflix & it saddens me to see all these other LARGE companies like J&J, Bayer, Essue, Deviance & many others put out these products (under false pretense) that has made life long lasting paralysis to all kinds of people & not one of them was even threatened with jail time plus the FDA approved them. I’m not saying what Elizabeth did was right but what is the difference of what she did vs what they have done….is it because she was a woman & these other companies are ran by men?
  • sarah bo berra
    Lazy recycled reporting after the first season
    In TV journalism reporters may need to constantly recycle material or repeat information within a short time span because people aren’t sitting glued to their screen and may miss some episodes. But with podcasts, I think most people are listening closely and chronologically—stop with the 50 recaps each episode! It’s frustrating to listen to the same clips and sound bites over and over and over again. After season 1, each episode has maybe 3-5 minutes of new content and everything else is recycled. Lazy reporting and editing, likely done by someone with limited experience with the podcast medium. Still listening to hear the snippets of new content but it’s truly painful.
  • 8930mom
    Terrible episode/ Great Podcast.
    This is a fantastic podcast but this last episode is terrible. It needs to be re released without the constant dramatic music. Also, where Is the narrative ? This is just a bunch of sound clips. Very disappointing after such a great series.
  • Akkarbs
    Boring
    Pretty good story but wow the narration is painfully boring.
  • MR116$
    Why no Balwani?
    Doesn’t his tole deserve attention?
  • feowkr
    Why are you repeating everything?
    Why is there a new episode and I’m 30 mins in and there is nothing new. What is the point of this latest episode. It’s all repeat.
  • needs the truth
    Poorly sold
    I don’t think there’s an original word after the first season. All podcasts after the first seasons seem to be rehash of season one.
  • Floperty
    lose the music
    The story is fasinating but the repetition and dramatic music is too much . I agree it sounds like a Wonderley bit with the distracting music. Just the facts, ma’am.
  • PavelJ539
    Background sound
    The content is great, but the background music/sound is annoying and distracting.
  • StokesVA
    Ruined by cheesy sound effects
    Please tell the story in a somewhat linear way and stop with the sensationalist overstylized format. It’s headache inducing, especially this latest ep. Way too many cuts. Way too much music, sirens, voiceovers, reputations of sound bites. Sounds like a Wondery podcast on steroids.
  • jgm33buc
    GREAT
    Rebecca Jarvis deserves an award for her work here! Just a great in depth picture on Holmes, Theranos and everything in between. Jarvis should be front and center for everything on ABC! Just a star.
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