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Watch Online / Valley of Hype: The Culture that Built Elizabeth Holmes (2021)
Desc: Valley of Hype: The Culture that Built Elizabeth Holmes: Directed by Marilena Tsangaroulis, Alexis Keenan Weed. Yahoo Finance, a leader in business and financial news, announced the first feature length documentary from Yahoo Finance Presents, Valley of Hype: The Culture that Built Elizabeth Holmes. Against the backdrop of criminal fraud accusations and a federal trial against Holmes -- once the world's youngest self-made female billionaire and CEO of her biotech company Theranos -- Valley of Hype explores the influence that Silicon Valley's startup culture played in Theranos' ascent and collapse. The film considers how the region's ethos, which sometimes values a perfect pitch over proven results, could be raised in her defense. The film, narrated by legal reporter Alexis Keenan, introduces individuals close to Theranos who question whether Holmes is to some extent a victim, rather than a villain, of the Silicon Valley culture that supported her ascent. The former Silicon Valley darling, Holmes, now faces up to 20 years in prison over the Justice Department's charges that she used Theranos, her once-hyped blood testing company, to defraud investors. The Yahoo Finance documentary features exclusive interviews with people tied to Theranos who have never spoken out before, including board member, Dan Warmenhoven, and bio-engineer, Jocelyn Bailey. The film also features experts on Silicon Valley's evolution as a tech and investment hub who question the diligence of other interested parties who went along for the company's once valued $9 billion ride. "Valley of Hype questions the diligence of financial, political, and academic heavyweights who surrounded Elizabeth Holmes and helped her build Theranos," Keenan said. "The film takes a look at those parties and how they fit into a culture that promoted extraordinary faith in an inexperienced college dropout."