🌎 Axios PM: Global trust crisis

Plus: New Sphere | Wednesday, October 16, 2024

Open in app View in browser   Presented By Instagram   Axios PM By Mike Allen · Oct 16, 2024 Good Wednesday afternoon. Today's newsletter, edited by Sam Baker, is 450 words, a 2-min. read. Thanks to Sheryl Miller for copy editing.     1 big thing: Democracies' trust crisis   Data: Edelman Trust Institute. Chart: Axios Visuals Faith in free and fair elections is plummeting globally, posing a serious threat to democracy, Axios Media Trends author Sara Fischer writes from new Edelman Trust Barometer data. With almost half of the world's population facing elections this year, 2024 will be a tipping point. 🔎 Zoom in: Among adults from 25 countries with elections between 2022 and 2025, the majority (55%) say they don't trust their electoral systems. Gen Z is the least trusting generation: Just 27% said they trust their countries' electoral systems. 🗳️ Between the lines: After an election, trust in government falls significantly among people on the losing side, Edelman's data shows. In seven countries that held elections in 2022, trust in government rose by 8% among people on the winning side, and declined by 6% on the losing side. Edelman president and CEO Richard Edelman tells Mike it's the sad reality of the "sore loser syndrome." Explore the data.     2. 💊 Private equity's Ozempic diet   Illustration: Allie Carl/Axios   Some private-equity firms are so bullish on Ozempic and other weight-loss drugs that they're pulling back from industries that could see their profits dip if the country's obesity rate falls. 💸 That could include certain snack makers, alcohol producers or restaurant chains, Axios Pro Rata author Dan Primack writes. Or gyms. Or grocery stores, which earn much of their meager margin on items that many GLP-1 users no longer crave. 🔮 The big picture: These investors are betting on widespread GLP-1 adoption — maybe even to the point where taking such medicines for weight loss becomes as routine as taking aspirin for headaches or antihistamines for seasonal allergies. Share this story.     A message from Instagram Teen Accounts: A new protected experience for teens, guided by parents     Instagram Teen Accounts have automatic protections for who can contact teens and the content they can see. Plus, only parents can approve safety setting changes for teens under 16. What this means: Built-in protections for teens, and peace of mind for parents. Learn more.     3. Catch me up   Photo: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA via Getty Images 🕯️ President Biden and former Presidents Obama and Clinton delivered eulogies at a memorial service for Ethel Kennedy in Washington today at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle. More pics ... Read our story. 📩 Former President Carter cast his mail-in ballot for Vice President Harris today. Carter, who has been in hospice care since February 2023, previously told his son he was hoping to live long enough to vote for Harris. Go deeper. 🌎 Global public debt is on track to match the size of the world economy in the coming years, Axios' Courtenay Brown writes from new IMF projections. Go deeper.     4. 👀 1 for the road: Second Sphere   The Las Vegas Sphere, lit up as a jack-o'-lantern, outshines the Las Vegas Strip on Monday. Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images   Abu Dhabi will get its own version of the Sphere, Las Vegas' instantly iconic entertainment venue. 🇦🇪 The UAE is also planning to open its first casino as it tries to bolster tourism to Abu Dhabi and differentiate the city from Dubai. Abu Dhabi will pay a franchise fee to Sphere Entertainment, as well as annual fees, AP reports.     A message from Instagram Instagram Teen Accounts: Limits for teens, peace of mind for parents     Instagram Teen Accounts help parents support teens as they grow. Teen Accounts include automatic protections limiting who can contact teens and what content they see. The impact: More protections for teens, and peace of mind for parents. Learn more.   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: