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NCAA’s groundbreaking proposal to pay D1 athletes... [Advertisement] December 06, 2023 [View Online]( | [Sign Up]( | [Shop]( [Morning Brew]( PRESENTED BY [Fidelity]( Good morning. For the second year running, the Brew will be handing out the Golden Mug Awards to commemorate the best, the worst, and the most forgotten business stories from the year that was. But we don’t decide who will take home the coveted Golden Mugs—you do. We’ve created a lightning-quick poll of four categories and are asking you to vote and determine the winners. We’ll hand out the Golden Mugs in an upcoming holiday newsletter. [Vote here](. —Cassandra Cassidy, Molly Liebergall, Sam Klebanov, Adam Epstein, Neal Freyman MARKETS Nasdaq 14,229.91 +0.31% S&P 4,567.18 -0.06% Dow 36,124.56 -0.22% 10-Year 4.177% -8.1 bps Bitcoin $43,865.04 +4.47% AT&T $17.22 +3.36% *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 12:00am ET. [Here's what these numbers mean.]( - Markets: Stocks were a bundle of “meh” on Tuesday, as the Nasdaq [ticked up]( but the Dow and S&P 500 inched down following the release of a mixed labor report. Meanwhile, AT&T shares jumped after the telecom giant struck a $14 billion deal with Ericsson to [modernize]( its wireless network.  SPORTS [NCAA proposes that athletes can get paid]( [The NCAA logo on a football field]( Greg Fiume/Getty Images Over the past few months, college sports have seen conferences shift, rules change, and a 13–0 team get left out of the [playoffs](. But a potentially larger shake-up is now in the works. On Tuesday, NCAA President Charlie Baker proposed a plan to create a new tier within Division I college athletics. The [groundbreaking proposal]( gives participating schools autonomy over name, image, and likeness (NIL) decisions and initiates a “long-overdue conversation” about the existing framework for compensating student-athletes. - Schools would be required to invest a minimum of $30,000/year per athlete for at least half of all eligible student-athletes into an “enhanced educational trust fund,” which by most accounts seems like a regular trust fund. - Student-athletes would be allowed to enter NIL deals directly with their schools rather than a third party. What it means for the future of college sports Baker’s proposed new tier pertains to “the highest-resourced colleges and universities,” understood to mean the Big Ten, Big 12, SEC, and ACC, which contain the largest and wealthiest athletic programs in the US. A new subdivision just for those schools could alleviate headaches around transfer limits, scholarships, and, most importantly, NIL rules. But…some observers say the proposal still doesn’t address the core issue: employment. The NCAA has lobbied for years to prevent college athletes from being named “employees,” but sports law experts see it as a necessary next step in order to give young athletes a share of the revenue they generate. The NCAA is going through it. It’s embroiled in multiple legal disputes, including an [antitrust lawsuit]( that could require it to pay billions in damages to student-athletes. There are also talks within the industry of a looming [Great Split]( in which the Power Five conferences ([soon to be Power Four]( would secede from the NCAA to form their own organization.—CC   PRESENTED BY FIDELITY [One shiny ETF package]( [Fidelity]( Want to level up your knowledge when it comes to active exchange-traded funds (ETFs)? ’Tis the season to get educated. And if you team up with the experts at Fidelity, that ETF knowledge will have you feeling pretty dang jolly—all year long. [Fidelity’s robust lineup]( combines Fidelity’s active management heritage with the potential tax efficiency benefits, lower costs, and trading flexibility when compared to like-mutual funds. With a suite of products designed to seek potential higher returns, active [ETFs]( can help you do more with your investment. Already pumped by these possibilities? (Understandable, TBH.) Work with Fidelity and their legacy of active management expertise to [uncover your unique investment opportunities](. WORLD [Tour de headlines](#) [CVS pharmacy]VIEW Press/Getty Images CVS is overhauling how it prices prescription drugs. In an announcement, the company promised that its new model would be [more transparent]( than the current setup, which prices drugs based on complex reimbursement formulas that can make the costs of prescriptions confusing for consumers. The new model, called CVS CostVantage, is based on a simple equation: Drugs will cost what CVS paid for them, plus a limited markup and a flat fee to cover the services of fulfilling the prescriptions. That’s similar to a plan proposed by billionaire Mark Cuban, founder of Cost Plus Drugs, to bring accountability to drug pricing in the US. US job openings hit a two-year low. In another sign of a cooling labor market, available positions in the US [dropped]( to 8.7 million in October, the lowest since 2021 and well below estimates for the month. That was music to the ears of the Fed, which wants to see the labor market soften alongside easing inflation before it considers cutting interest rates. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate remained near [historic lows]( though it climbed to 3.9% last month—its highest level since January 2022. The US will deny visas to violent Israeli settlers. The Biden administration on Tuesday said it will impose [travel bans]( on Israeli settlers and Palestinians who have committed violence in the West Bank. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the new policy will target “individuals believed to have been involved in undermining peace, security, or stability” in the West Bank, where violence has spiked during Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza. In October, President Biden said Israeli settlers were “attacking Palestinians in places that they’re entitled to be” and has reportedly pressured Israeli officials to take more action against settlers. ENTERTAINMENT [Godzilla is so back]( [Pink Godzilla roars]( From the upcoming film Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire; Warner Bros. Pictures As several new takes on the classic monster stagger across our screens, we are officially in the golden age of entertainment for people who kept reptiles as pets growing up. The latest awakening of the king of the monsters hit US theaters this past weekend: [Godzilla Minus One]( a Japanese film, is [being hailed]( as one of the best Godzilla movies ever with [A1 reviews]( and a third-place, roar-worthy box-office performance. The new movie… - Had the biggest US debut ever for a Japanese live-action film and the second-biggest debut of any foreign-language live-action movie, according to [Collider](. - Has already grossed $35 million worldwide, more than doubling its $15 million budget even before its UK premiere. Big week to be a huge lizard. On Sunday, Warner Bros. released the [trailer]( for Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. It’s the fifth installment in Hollywood’s ~$2 billion MonsterVerse, which expanded to television last month with an Apple TV+ series. Why can’t we get enough Godzilla? Godzilla Minus One director Takashi Yamazaki told [The Verge]( that the iconic Brobdingnagian monster traditionally [represents a crisis]( humanity is facing at that moment, like bureaucratic failings or the fear of nuclear war. And there are a lot of those to go around right now.—ML   TOGETHER WITH DECOY WINES [Decoy Wines]( Wine harmony awaits. Ready to find your ideal match in the wild world of wine? We teamed up with Decoy to create a [personality quiz]( that pairs you with your perfect pour. Are you charming like a Merlot? Iconic like a Chardonnay? [Discover your grape self](. LIFESTYLE [Being a child-free couple pays off]( [Hand holding]( Illustration: Francis Scialabba, Photo: Puttapon/Getty Images Children can be a perpetual source of joy, but they also eat their own boogers and are a bottomless pit of financial commitment. That may explain why more American couples are going child-free, [opting for]( the double-income-no-kids (DINK) lifestyle and [evangelizing it]( all over TikTok. US birthrates took a steep dip during the Great Recession and have fallen since. In a Pew survey from October 2021, 44% of nonparents ages 18–49 said they were unlikely ever to have kids, compared with 37% in 2018. The 17% who cited money reasons may not be wrong: DINKhood does seem to be the financial sweet spot… - Child-free couples living together earn an average of $138,000/year, which is $9,000+ more than couples with kids, per Federal Reserve data analyzed by Rocket Mortgage. - Fed findings also show that DINKs’ median net worth of $399k is bigger than that of couples with children ($251k) or adults with [any other family status](. Why else might couples forgo the wonders of rearing children? Experts blame economic uncertainty, lack of paid maternity leave, the punishing costs of childcare, and climate anxiety. It could also be “millennial mom dread”…a cultural phenomenon Vox [recently described]( as a mix of conflicting social pressures and overwhelming expectations that makes modern motherhood seem less attractive or achievable.—SK   GRAB BAG [Key performance indicators](#) [Jim Carrey typing on a keyboard]Bruce Almighty/Universal Pictures Stat: Adults are supposed to have their homework days behind them. But if you’ve applied to a job recently, it may have conjured up memories of pulling an all-nighter to write an Animal Behavior essay after you skipped class all semester. According to data from Glassdoor, interview reviews mentioning [take-home assignments]( increased 86% in Q3 compared to the same period in 2019. And those reviews are getting harsh: More than half (56%) now report a negative interview experience, compared to 37% four years ago. While pre-hire assignments aren’t new, Bloomberg reported that they’ve expanded in recent years to many more industries and roles, thanks to improvements in technology and the rise of remote work. Quote: “This experience has been so humbling.” Trevor Jacob now has six months to do nothing but ponder the pitfalls of internet clout-chasing. The YouTuber from California was sentenced to half a year [in prison]( this week for deliberately crashing a plane in 2021 as part of a sponsorship with a wallet company—and then lying to federal investigators about it, telling them the plane lost power. The video, titled “I Crashed My Plane,” had nearly 3 million views before it was removed from YouTube. In a statement to the BBC, the thoroughly humbled Jacob admitted his six-month sentence was the “right decision.” Read: Krampus isn’t coming to town. He’s already here. ([Washington Post]( NEWS [What else is brewing](#) - [Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL)]( finally gave up on his monthslong obstruction of hundreds of US military appointments. - [Panera’s]( caffeinated Charged Lemonade was blamed for a second death after a man in Florida drank three and suffered a fatal heart attack. - [A group of activist nuns]( sued gun-maker Smith & Wesson to get the company to change how it makes and markets its AR-15 rifle. - [Zepbound]( Eli Lilly’s weight loss drug, is now available in the US as an alternative to Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy. - [Lionel Messi]( was named Time’s 2023 Athlete of the Year. RECS [Wednesday to-do list] Feast: Recipes for several unique [holiday cookies]( like saffron and ginger macaroons. Reminisce: Ten minutes of [sounds]( that every ’90s kid will remember. Sleep tight: The Calm app now offers a [bedtime story]( in the AI-generated voice of Jimmy Stewart, who died in 1997. Hi, Barbie!: The most popular Barbies [of all time]( according to Mattel. Listen: Looking to build a business and/or wealth? Get insights and actionable advice from two women who’ve done both. Listen to [BOSSY](. A magic microchip: Nerve issues have long been diagnosed using the “treat and pray” method. But [Autonomix]( seeks to change that. Learn about their innovative nerve-sensing technology [in our latest article]( *A message from our sponsor. GAMES [The puzzle section](#) Word Search: Is on beauty rest today. Puzzles will be back tomorrow with a fresh Mini. Wikipedia trivia Wikipedia revealed the 25 most popular English articles in 2023 based on pageviews. It may surprise you that four of the top 10 most-read articles centered around a single sport. Can you name it? FROM THE CREW [Flash sale on MB merch!]( [Morning Brew merch]( The Morning Brew store is offering up to 50% off all the merch you love. Don’t miss our three-day flash sale beginning today and ending on December 9. You have 72 hours—[happy shopping](. ANSWER [Cricket](. The articles were “2023 Cricket World Cup,” “Indian Premier League,” “Cricket World Cup,” and “2023 Indian Premier League.” The No. 1 article overall, though, was “ChatGPT.” Word of the Day Today’s Word of the Day is: Brobdingnagian, meaning “marked by tremendous size” and alluding to a land of giants in Gulliver’s Travels. Thanks to Mike from Hillsborough, New Jersey, and others for the colossally good suggestion. Submit another [Word of the Day here](. ✢ A Note From Fidelity ETFs are subject to market fluctuation and the risks of their underlying investments. ETFs are subject to management fees and other expenses. Before investing in any mutual fund or exchange-traded fund, you should consider its investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses. Contact Fidelity for a prospectus, an offering circular, or, if available, a summary prospectus containing this information. Read it carefully. Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC, Member NYSE, SIPC, 900 Salem Street, Smithfield, RI 02917 1121841.1.0 ✤ A Note From Autonomix This is a paid advertisement for Autonomix’s Regulation A+ Offering. Please read the offering circular at [invest.autonomix.com/](. Written by [Adam Epstein]( [Neal Freyman]( [Cassandra Cassidy]( [Molly Liebergall]( and Sam Klebanov Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. Interested in podcasts? - Check out ours [here]( [ADVERTISE]( // [CAREERS]( // [SHOP]( // [FAQ]( Update your email preferences or unsubscribe [here](. View our privacy policy [here](. Copyright © 2023 Morning Brew. All rights reserved. 22 W 19th St, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10011