The Dropout is an American true crimepodcast hosted by Rebecca Jarvis that follows the story of Elizabeth Holmes, her defunct medical company Theranos, and the related federal criminal fraud trial, United States v. Elizabeth A. Holmes, et al. It was produced by ABC News, Taylor Dunn, Victoria Thompson, and Rebecca Jarvis. After the initial six episodes of the podcast aired in 2019, a two-hour 20/20 episode premiered in March 2019, following the popularity of the podcast. A second season of the podcast, titled, The Dropout: Elizabeth Holmes on Trial, debuted in 2022 and followed along with the criminal fraud federal trial of Holmes.
Holmes dropped out of Stanford University and founded Theranos, a medical technology company, in 2003 and became the world's youngest female self-made billionaire.[1][2] The company was valued at approximately $9 billion.[3] The company claimed that it could complete a full range of blood tests with a single drop of blood, testing for hundreds of diseases.[4] Theranos sold its blood-testing technology to Walgreens.[5] The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission later charged Holmes with defrauding investors.[5] In June 2018, Holmes was indicted on 11 counts of felony fraud in the U.S. federal criminal fraud trial, United States v. Elizabeth A. Holmes, et al.[4][6] The podcast interviews former employees, investors, and patients and includes portions of deposition tapes.[2][5]
Production
Research and original reporting
The series was produced by ABC News.[7][4][8] The podcast was written and reported by Jarvis, along with ABC News senior producer Victoria Thompson and Taylor Dunn.[9] Jarvis, Thompson, and Dunn served as producers of the podcast.[10][1] The book Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by journalist and author John Carreyrou formed the basis of research for the podcast.[11] Jarvis and her team conducted detailed original reporting on the Theranos fraud.[12] Jarvis spent three years investigating Elizabeth Holmes and carrying out investigative journalism about the defunct medical company.[13][14][15] For the second season, Jarvis herself attended the federal trial of Holmes, United States v. Elizabeth A. Holmes, et al., in California.[16][17]
Deposition tapes
Jarvis gained access to legal deposition tapes of Elizabeth Holmes, and multiple key individuals involved in the Theranos fraud case.[18][19][20] The depositions of Holmes had not previously been publicized before the podcast release.[20][21] Those featured in depositions excerpted in the podcast included Balwani, along with Theranos board members: former Wells Fargo CEO Richard Kovacevich, former US Chief of Naval OperationsGary Roughead, and former US Senator and medical doctor, Bill Frist.[19]
Interviews
Jarvis hosted and narrated the podcast.[22] She conducted interviews with medical patients that had been tested using the Theranos device.[19][23] Jarvis landed an exclusive interview with the lawyer for Theranos former President and COO Sunny Balwani, Jeff Coopersmith.[19] Jarvis interviewed former Theranos board member Avie Tevanian, who was also a former high-ranking business executive at Apple.[19] Jarvis interviewed Theranos employees, including those that had worked within the company's laboratories.[24] She discussed the experience of working at the company with Theranos whistleblower, Tyler Shultz, grandson of Theranos board member and former US Secretary of State, George Shultz.[19]
Release
The podcast series launched in January 2019 with six episodes.[9][27][21] It was made available on the ABC News app, along with other apps including Stitcher, Spotify, TuneIn, Google Podcasts, and Apple Podcasts.[28][9][27] Jarvis simultaneously reported on content from her podcast research for ABC World News Tonight and Nightline.[29][30] It was the number one ranked most popular podcast launched by ABC News.[31][18][32] It was also among the top ranked podcasts on iTunes in March 2019.[33] After the initial 2019 six-episode edition, a two-hour 20/20 episode premiered in March 2019, following the popularity of the podcast.[31] It was nominated for a news Emmy Award in the Outstanding Feature Story in a Newsmagazine category.[34][4][1]
The second season of The Dropout debuted on August 30, 2021 with two new episodes, and was timed to follow the federal criminal fraud case against Elizabeth Holmes: United States v. Elizabeth A. Holmes, et al.[25][18][26] During season two, Jarvis simultaneously reported on the trial for ABC News, Good Morning America, and Nightline.[35][36] The series released one episode per week in the second season.[18] Jarvis used the podcast to follow along with Holmes' federal trial.[25][18][26] She enlisted the help of law scholars, Theranos medical patients, and Holmes' prior business associates, for commentary upon the trial.[18][37] The second season was titled: The Dropout: Elizabeth Holmes on Trial.[18][38][39] It was released on the ABC News app, Audacy, TuneIn, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.[18][40] An episode of the podcast was released January 4, 2022, one day after Holmes was found guilty of fraud and conspiracy in the federal case.[41] By 2022 the series had released 21 episodes.[7] The second season of the podcast concluded in January 2022.[42]
On March 4, 2022, ABC News released a special two-hour-long 20/20 episode with reporting by Jarvis, covering the federal fraud trial of Holmes.[32][43][44] The 20/20 investigative journalism piece by Jarvis was titled: The Drop Out - The Rise and Con of Elizabeth Holmes.[44][45] It focused both on personal developments in Holmes' life including her new partner an heir to a hotel business, and her accusations of abuse against her former partner Sunny Balwani, that he denied.[46]
ABC News released a bonus episode of the podcast The Dropout: Elizabeth Holmes on Trial, on August 11, 2022 titled: "Amanda and The Other Liz".[42] It featured an interview by Jarvis with Amanda Seyfried, the actress portraying Elizabeth Holmes in the television miniseries, along with showrunner Elizabeth Meriwether.[42][24] A second bonus episode of the podcast was released in November 2022, following the sentencing of Holmes in her criminal fraud trial.[20]
Episodes
Season 1
The first season debuted with a trailer on January 15, 2019 followed by the first full episode one week later.[47][48][49] It concluded with the sixth episode on February 26, 2019.[47][48][49]
No.
Title
Length (minutes:seconds)
Original release date
0
"Trailer: The Rise and Fall of Elizabeth Holmes' Theranos"
2:00
January 15, 2019 (2019-01-15)
1
"Myth Making"
47:31
January 22, 2019 (2019-01-22)
2
"The Enforcer"
40:23
January 29, 2019 (2019-01-29)
3
"A Star Is Born"
43:42
February 5, 2019 (2019-02-05)
4
"The Whistleblower"
44:46
February 12, 2019 (2019-02-12)
5
"The Downfall"
42:47
February 19, 2019 (2019-02-19)
6
"What Now?"
39:12
February 26, 2019 (2019-02-26)
Season 2
The second season began with a trailer released on August 5, 2021, followed by the first full episode of the second season on August 31 of the same year.[47][48][49] The second season concluded on November 18, 2022.[47][48][49]
No.
Title
Length (minutes:seconds)
Original release date
0
"Introducing 'The Dropout: Elizabeth Holmes on Trial'"
Meriwether expanded upon the podcast in order to elaborate upon a character study of Elizabeth Holmes.[61] Meriweather listened to the Jarvis podcast and attempted to conceive how the character of Holmes behaved when she was out of the public eye.[62] She explained to The New York Times her attempt to understand and delve into the character of Holmes: "I felt like people's understanding of who she was had been limited to the deep voice and the turtleneck. I was interested in going deeper, and I felt like Rebecca's podcast was made with that spirit of wanting to figure out what motivated her."[63] Television director Michael Showalter listened to the podcast to gain context on the material presented in the miniseries.[64]
Actress Amanda Seyfried had been a listener following the podcast, prior to being cast in the miniseries of the same name.[65] Seyfried assessed the podcast: "There's something very calming about Rebecca. There's something very fair about Rebecca and her journalism, the way she speaks about things, the way she articulates them, the questions she asks. The whole team of them did an amazing job."[65]
In a review of the podcast for The Verge, journalist Andrew Liptak commented, "the series has provided a good overview, aided by interviews and audio from the people who worked there."[75]Time reporter Hannah Lynn wrote, "While many podcasts have had singular episodes about Elizabeth Holmes, The Dropout is the definitive audio documentary that tracks the rise and fall of Theranos."[76]Common Sense Media gave the podcast a favorable review: "Every inch of the Theranos downfall is covered in this podcast, making it intriguing, informational, and shocking all at once."[77] Jake Greenberg of Podcast Review called it "a Bulletproof Retelling of the Theranos Scandal".[78] Greenberg wrote, "The Dropout is investigative through and through".[78] Author Susie Orman Schnall called the production, "Rebecca Jarvis' fascinating podcast".[79] Robert M. McManus, Stanley J. Ward, and Alexandra K. Perry noted the work was a good journalistic resource on the topic of Theranos, in their book on Ethical Leadership.[80] Gerard Cockburn wrote for The Adelaide Advertiser, "Documenting the collapse of Theranos, a prominent medical tech start-up which made CEO Elizabeth Holmes America's youngest female self-made billionaire, The Dropout is a gripping tale of the boom and bust nature of America's tech industry."[81] He called the podcast a "gripping account", and an "enthralling tale of a modern day boomtown antics."[81] Cockburn concluded, "This podcast is well worth the listen, engrossing you in a tale of lies and deception and rorts in the American tech industry."[81]
Phoebe Luckhurst reviewed the podcast for the Evening Standard, and wrote that Jarvis had, "done an exhaustive job in charting Holmes's incredible rise and consequent disgrace, including interviews with those who observed her at close range, and never before aired testimony from Holmes."[21] Luckhurst characterized the production: "It's an astonishing expose lies, damned lies and Silicon Valley hubris."[21] Fiona Sturges of the Financial Times wrote of her need to complete the series quickly: "All of which is to say that, in listening to The Dropout, I am late to the party. But over the past week I have inhaled the entire series, bathing in its addictive narrative of greed, ambition and duplicity."[82] Of the research that went into the podcast series, Sturges wrote that Jarvis: "is fastidious in her approach, exhaustively chasing down Theranos's employees, board members and investors, illustrating how they got drawn in to such a dishonest and doomed enterprise."[82] Patricia Nicol reviewed the podcast for The Sunday Times, and highlighted it among, "17 Podcasts for Packed Commutes".[83] Nicol called it: "an assured, well-connected guide to the spectacular fall from grace of 'the world's youngest self-made female billionaire', once hailed as a Silicon Valley visionary."[83] She said the podcast was addictive due to schaudenfreude.[83]
Erin Bury wrote for Quill, "Based on the book Bad Blood, which is well worth reading before or after you listen, The Dropout podcast weaves Holmes’s story into a compelling narrative through interviews with key players, past media interviews, and depositions."[11] Bury concluded: "By the end of it you can’t decide if Holmes is a mad genius or the world’s biggest con artist - but either way, it’s one hell of a story."[11] Alison Foreman of Mashable wrote, "The Dropout is the most comprehensive Theranos-centered podcast on the market."[27] She observed, "this six-part series tackles Holmes' downfall from multiple angles and with meticulous detail."[27] Foreman concluded, "If you're looking for the most complete Theranos narrative with the most informational value, The Dropout is your best bet."[27] Writing for The Courier-Mail, Sarah Matthews commented, "The Dropout is the result of a three-year investigation by US journalist Rebecca Jarvis, and is a fascinating insight into the pressures of Silicon Valley and how one charismatic visionary managed to fool so many people for so long."[84]
Writing for The Herald-Sun, journalist Glenn McDonald commented, "In a podcast environment where opinion reigns — and louder is mistaken for better — The Dropout is a rock-solid example of straight, no-nonsense investigative journalism."[12] McDonald observed, "The Dropout is one of the most definitive accounts of the Theranos scandal".[12] Danielle Stephens reviewed the podcast for The Guardian, and wrote that the series, "leaves you wondering; how on earth did this scam go on for so long? And when does ambition become dangerous?"[85] Writing about the quality of the production, Stephens said: "The story is expertly told and left me feeling personally aggrieved by a woman I have never met. Not just for her scheme, but for the damage it has done to the idea that a woman could be the next Steve Jobs in an industry dominated by men."[85] A review of the second season in The Guardian wrote, "episodes expertly dissect the live-time trial happenings with thrilling exclusive interviews."[86]The Guardian noted that Rebecca Jarvis, "takes the listener through a gripping, multi-year investigation".[86] A subsequent article in the newspaper called the podcast a "riveting series".[24]
^ abcABC Television (January 16, 2019), "ABC News' 'Nightline'-Produced Documentary 'The Dropout' Examines the Rise and Fall of Elizabeth Holmes, Founder and CEO of Theranos", Targeted News Service – via NewsBank
^ abcMcDonald, Glenn (May 24, 2019), "The 5 podcasts you should listen to now", The Herald-Sun – via NewsBank
^Barney, Chuck (March 11, 2019), "Review: HBO film on Elizabeth Holmes, Theranos a chilling cautionary tale", The Mercury News – via NewsBank
^"Aidy Bryant of 'SNL' shines in 'Shrill'", New Hampshire Union Leader, p. D7, March 13, 2019 – via NewsBank
^"100 Podcasts to Love - In a mere five years, podcasts have become a very big thing, Here's our guide to the best listering available out there", Sunday Times, London, England: NI Syndication Limited, p. 4, August 25, 2019 – via Gale OneFile
^ abcdefghijkABC (August 6, 2021), "ABC News' No. 1 Podcast 'The Dropout' Returns With New Episodes As Elizabeth Holmes Goes to Trial for Alleged Fraud", Targeted News Service – via NewsBank
^ abcdefBarney, Chuck (March 15, 2019), "TV tonight: Elizabeth Holmes, Theranos scandal on '20/20'", The Mercury News – via NewsBank
^ abcABC News (November 19, 2022), "ABC Audio's Hit Podcasts 'The Dropout', 'Start Here' to Release Bonus Episode on Elizabeth Holmes Following Her Sentencing", Targeted News Service – via NewsBank
^ abcdLuckhurst, Phoebe (February 8, 2019), "Lies, damned lies and Silicon Valley hubris Elizabeth Holmes exposed", London Evening Standard, p. 43 – via Gale OneFile
^"Podcast Post: Get smarter this Eid weekend", Gulf News, United Arab Emirates: SyndiGate Media Inc., May 29, 2019 – via Gale OneFile
^"Rise and Fall of Elizabeth Holmes - Alleged Victims of Theranos Scandal Speak Out", Good Morning America, March 15, 2019 – via NewsBank
^ abcDuggins, Alexi; Richardson, Hollie; Verdier, Hannah; Kalia, Ammar (November 9, 2023), "Tales of transition, queer joy and more to mark Transgender Awareness Week; Figures from Charlie Craggs to Mika Onyx celebrate the full spectrum of the trans experience in a new Anthem Talks series. Plus: five of the best podcasts about recent history* Don't get Hear Here delivered to your inbox? Sign up here.", The Guardian, Guardian News & Media – via Gale OneFile
^ abcPhillips, Kyra (August 31, 2021), "What You Need to Know - News Headlines", Good Morning America – via NewsBank, ABC's Chief Business Correspondent, Rebecca Jarvis, is tracking it all here and on season two of her podcast, the 'The Dropout.'
^ abcdeForeman, Alison (March 21, 2019), "Can't get enough of Elizabeth Holmes? Here's what to watch after 'The Inventor'", Mashable.com – via NewsBank
^"Pick of the podcasts", The Sunday Post, Aberdeen, Scotland: NLA Access Media Limited, p. 29, June 2, 2019 – via Gale OneFile
^"The Dropout - Holmes Faces Criminal Charge in Blood Test Debacle", Nightline, ABC, January 23, 2019 – via NewsBank
^ abABC Television (March 11, 2019), "ABC News' '20/20' Presents Two-Hour Documentary, 'The Dropout,' on Silicon Valley Star Elizabeth Holmes and Her Billion Dollar Blood Testing Company, Theranos, Airing Friday, March 15", Targeted News Service – via NewsBank
^ abcJacobs, Meredith (February 28, 2022), "'The Dropout': ABC News to Air '20/20' on Elizabeth Holmes Scandal", The Albany Herald – via NewsBank
^Stephanopoulos, George (March 14, 2019), "'The Dropout' - The Rise and Fall of Elizabeth Holmes", Good Morning America – via NewsBank, Back now with the rise and fall of Elizabeth Holmes. She was a college dropout, who became a billionaire on paper before the biotech company she founded went belly up amid accusations of fraud. Her story the subject of the top rank iTunes podcast, "The Dropout," by our Rebecca Jarvis and on "20/20" tomorrow night.
^Smith, Gwendolyn (September 6, 2021), "Podcasts: The Dropout", i Newspaper, NLA Access Media Limited – via Gale OneFile
^"Elizabeth Holmes found guilty: The best films, podcasts, and reads about the Theranos fraudster.", TheNextWeb.com, January 4, 2022 – via Gale OneFile
^Barney, Chuck (September 2, 2021), "As Elizabeth Holmes goes on trial, Hollywood dives into her story", East Bay Times – via NewsBank
^Chang, Juju (January 3, 2022), "Guilty", Nightline – via NewsBank, Holmes was found guilty of fraud and conspiracy. ABC's chief business correspondent Rebecca Jarvis, who's also host and creator of the podcast, 'The Dropout,' has been following the trial.
^ abcABC News (August 13, 2022), "ABC News' Hit Podcast 'The Dropout: Elizabeth Holmes on Trial' Releases Bonus Episode", Targeted News Service – via NewsBank
^ABC (March 3, 2022), "ABC News Presents Two-Hour '20/20' on Incredible Cons and Conviction of Elizabeth Holmes", Targeted News Service – via NewsBank
^ abJarvis, Rebecca (March 4, 2022), "The Drop Out: The Rise and Con of Elizabeth Holmes", 20/20, ABC News – via NewsBank
^Jacobs, Meredith (February 28, 2022), "'The Dropout': ABC News to Air '20/20' on Elizabeth Holmes Scandal", UWire Text, ULOOP Inc., TV Insider, p. 1 – via Gale OneFile
^Chilton, Louis (March 4, 2022), "The Dropout: What is fact and what is fiction in Netflix's new hit series? Fact-based drama is adapted from a hit true crime podcast of the same name; Fact-based drama is adapted from a hit true crime podcast of the same name.", The Independent, Independent Digital News and Media Limited – via Gale OneFile
^Liedtke, Michael (March 2, 2022), "Elizabeth Holmes's sordid saga goes from trial to TV series; Hulu is presenting a limited TV series about fallen tech star Elizabeth Holmes just two months after she her conviction for duping investors in her blood-testing startup Theranos.", The Independent, Independent Digital News and Media Limited, Associated Press – via Gale OneFile
^"Your best streams", Daily Record, Glasgow, Scotland: MGN Ltd., p. 14, February 26, 2022 – via Gale OneFile
^Smith IV, Raye (February 27, 2022), "Stay in school: Miniseries brings Rebecca Jarvis podcast to life", Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette – via NewsBank
^Dickie, George (February 27, 2022), "Inventing a fraud - 'The Dropout' chronicles rise and fall of Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes", Boston Herald – via NewsBank
^Granger, Susan (October 11, 2022), "Granger on Film: Amanda Seyfried expertly propels 'The Dropout' as Elizabeth Holmes", Fairfield Citizen News – via NewsBank
^O'Connell, Oliver (August 26, 2021), "Elizabeth Holmes trial: Everything you need to know about the Theranos founder; Fraud trial puts career and life under spotlight as new mother Holmes faces court over Theranos scandal.", The Independent, Independent Digital News and Media Limited – via Gale OneFile
^Lambe, Stacy (March 24, 2022), "'The Dropout': Amanda Seyfried Breaks Down Her Awkward Dancing as Elizabeth Holmes (Exclusive)", ABC - 11 WHAS, Louisville, KY – via NewsBank
^Gracenote, George Dickie (February 25, 2022), "It was a device that was supposed to revolutionize the diagnosis and treatment", Daily Herald, Arlington Heights, Illinois: Paddock Publications – via Gale OneFile
^Schnall, Susie Orman (2024), "Acknowledgements", Anna Bright Is Hiding Something: A Novel, SparkPress, ISBN978-1684632527
^McManus, Robert M.; Ward, Stanley J.; Perry, Alexandra K. (2023), Ethical Leadership: A Primer: Second Edition, Edward Elgar Publishing; 2nd edition, p. 372, ISBN978-1802208658
^ abSturges, Fiona (March 25, 2019), "How Theranos went from boom to doomed", Financial Times, p. 14 – via Gale OneFile
^ abcNicol, Patricia (September 19, 2021), "17 Podcasts for Packed Commutes: Dreading your return to the office? These shows will sweeten the journey", The Sunday Times, London, England, p. 20 – via Gale OneFile
^Matthews, Sarah (October 26, 2019), "Staying In", The Courier-Mail, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, p. 20 – via Gale OneFile
^ abStephens, Danielle (March 15, 2019), "Invisibilia returns with more painful, brilliant stories -- podcasts of the week; Hanna Rosin and Alix Spiegel's series explores more unseen details of everyday life, including the tale of a dancer who tries to heal an injury by ignoring it", The Guardian – via Gale OneFile
^ ab"Podcast newbies, rejoice: 6 great podcasts for first-time listeners; Finding a podcast you love can be overwhelming, especially for people who haven't listened to one before. Here, we ease you into the noisy space with selections hand-picked based on your interests.", The Guardian, Guardian News & Media, October 14, 2021 – via Gale OneFile
^"Profile, Taylor Dunn, Producer, ABC News", Forbes.com, 2024, retrieved May 16, 2024, Following a three-year investigation into Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos, Dunn co-produced and co-wrote ABC podcast "The Dropout," which won a Front Page Award.