Los Angeles Times

The Elizabeth Holmes story is not about the black and the blinks

In one way, Elizabeth Holmes has achieved her childhood dream.

In a letter she purports to have written to her father as a child, the former Theranos CEO and current potential jailbird, said she wanted to invent something new, something that no one had previously believed possible.

And she has done exactly that.

Holmes did not invent a way to diagnose 100 diseases from a drop of blood via a high-tech machine, as she promised countless investors and the public. But she has generated 100 new ways that professional disgrace can be parsed in the multiplatform digital universe and, in doing so, proved that many people would rather obsess over a person's hair than contemplate the fact that we are a nation easily conned.

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles Times4 min readAmerican Government
Commentary: Don’t Want Biden Or Trump To Have So Much Power? Maybe The US Needs A Poly-presidency
At the Constitutional Convention in 1787, Pennsylvania delegate James Wilson brought up a seemingly un-American idea. He said the executive branch of America’s government should be headed by a single person: a president. Several constitutional delega
Los Angeles Times2 min read
Ashanti And Nelly Confirm They're Engaged And Having A Baby, Baby, Baby, Baby, Baby
It's true! Ashanti is expecting her first child with longtime love Nelly. The "Baby" singer and the "Hot in Herre" rapper confirmed months of pregnancy rumors Wednesday after much speculation about their growing family. They also confirmed that they'
Los Angeles Times4 min read
Commentary: In Utah, The Capitol Really Is The People’s House
Many state capitol buildings feel unapproachable, tucked away downtown or barricaded behind lanes of noisy traffic. Not so in Salt Lake City. The Utah Capitol sits at the mouth of a verdant canyon, flanked by parks and neighborhoods, perched below th

Related Books & Audiobooks