💍 Axios PM: Lab-grown jewels divide

🎅 Plus: Santa tracker | Tuesday, December 24, 2024

View in browser   Presented By Instagram   Axios PM By Mike Allen · Dec 24, 2024 🎄Merry Christmas Eve! Today's newsletter, edited by Natalie Daher, is 630 words, a 2-min. read. Thanks to Sheryl Miller for copy editing. ⚡ Situational awareness: Former President Bill Clinton, 78, was discharged from a hospital in D.C. today after being treated for the flu. Go deeper.     1 big thing: 💎 Lab-grown bling   Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios Flashy, lab-grown gems are dividing jewelry lovers, Axios' Sami Sparber reports. Why it matters: Rings are getting larger as lab-grown diamonds catch on — mainly because they cost a fraction of natural stones. Jewelers say many young couples choose lab-grown diamond rings to save money for a home or other priorities. Others want to score their dream bling for less or see the gems as more ethical. 💍 But critics compare sporting lab-grown jewels to carrying a knockoff designer bag. "Buy what you can afford and be happy with it. Don't be fake," a TikTok user wrote on New York City-based custom jeweler Erica Sett's page. Where a 3-carat diamond or certain color or clarity grade was once a flex, "people feel like their natural diamonds become less special to them when everyone else has what they have," Sett told Axios. 📈 Follow the money: In 2020, the average lab-grown diamond was 1.2 carats and cost $3,887, Axios' Felix Salmon reports from industry data. By 2024, the average size had swelled 60% to 1.9 carats, while the average price had dropped by 30% to $2,657. Share this story.     2. Where's Santa?   Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios   Legendary Santa tracker NORAD tells Axios they'll be relying on tried-and-true ways to track Santa this year. That means no AI! "We track Santa using three systems: radars including the North Warning System, satellites and NORAD military aircraft," Capt. Rebecca Garand told Axios' Ashley May. "These systems provide NORAD with a continuous picture of Santa's whereabouts both in North America and abroad," Garand says. 🎅 Santa usually begins his journey around 6 a.m. ET on Christmas Eve "and zigzags north and south as he makes his way west." Track Santa.     A message from Instagram 3 out of 4 parents agree: they should be in charge of teen app downloads     Congress has the opportunity to establish a national standard requiring app store parental consent and age verification for teens under 16. Parents support it. Here's why: Putting parents in charge of teen app downloads helps them keep teens safe online. Tell Congress: act now.     3. Catch up quick   Collapsed pier at the Santa Cruz Wharf in Santa Cruz, Calif., yesterday. Photo: Daniel Dreifuss/AFP via Getty 🌊 Heavy storms caused the partial collapse of a pier in Santa Cruz, Calif., yesterday. Three people were rescued after high surf forced them into the water. (Washington Post) ✈️ This morning's hour-long American Airlines ground stop was caused by a network hardware issue in a system that coordinates and dispatches flights. Delays mounted at some hubs, including Charlotte and DFW, but a Christmas Eve meltdown was avoided. (The Wall Street Journal) 😷 Whooping cough cases in the U.S. hit their highest level in a decade. 32,000+ cases have been recorded this year so far — more than six times the total last mid-December. Go deeper. 🚗 Toyota said today that it'll donate $1 million to President-elect Trump's inauguration — a day after Ford and GM made the same commitment. The Detroit giants are also contributing vehicles to the festivities, but Japan-based Toyota isn't planning to. (Reuters)     4. 🐽 1 snout thing: Miami's pig pardons   Last year's pig pardoning. Photo: Revolve Group Miami doesn't roast chestnuts for Christmas. We prefer to barbecue pork over an open fire, Axios Miami co-author Martin Vassalo writes. Cuban Americans' Christmas Eve feast, Nochebuena, includes whole pigs roasted in underground pits, on spits or in special metal boxes. The ubiquity of lechón asado, or roasted pork, on Miami dinner tables has led to a unique holiday tradition: the annual pig pardoning. Every year since 2018, the county mayor has pardoned two pigs bound for la caja china — a roasting box. Photo: Terry Spencer/AP Above: Last Friday, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava pardoned 4-month-old pigs Glinda and Elphaba (names courtesy "Wicked") at Latin Cafe 2000, joined by restaurant CEO Eric Castellanos. Share this story.     A message from Instagram Teen Accounts: A protected experience for teens, guided by parents     Instagram Teen Accounts are designed to address parents' biggest concerns, providing automatic protections for who can contact their teens and the content they can see. The impact: Built-in limits give parents more peace of mind when it comes to protecting their teens. Learn more.   🏎️ 🔧 Have fun wrapping packages and bringing toys to life. 🥕 Don't forget a healthy snack for Santa. 📱 Thank you for being such a loyal PMer — we love this audience. And please ask a friend to give themselves the gift of PM! Are you a fan of this email format? Your essential communications — to staff, clients and other stakeholders — can have the same style. Axios HQ, a powerful platform, will help you do it.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. Advertise with us. Axios, PO Box 101060, Arlington VA 22201   You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from Axios. To stop receiving this newsletter, unsubscribe or manage your email preferences.   Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up now to get Axios in your inbox.   Follow Axios on social media: