Tuesday Briefing: Remembering Jimmy Carter

December 31, 2024

	By Gaya Gupta

Good morning. We’re covering the death of former President Jimmy Carter and the ongoing investigation into a plane crash in South Korea.

Plus, looking back at 2024.

Damon Winter/The New York Times

Remembering Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter, who rose from a peanut farm to become the 39th U.S. president, died on Sunday at his home in Georgia. He was 100.

While his presidency is remembered more for its failures than for its successes, his tenure nevertheless included notable achievements, particularly in foreign affairs. His human rights policies set a new standard for how the U.S. should deal with abusive governments. The peace treaty he brokered between Israel and Egypt still holds decades later. And he signed a strategic arms limitation agreement with the Soviet Union and formalized diplomatic relations with China. Read Peter Baker’s full obituary here.

In his farewell address to the nation when leaving office in 1981, Carter told Americans that he planned to “take up once more the only title in our democracy superior to that of president — the title of citizen.” Under that mantle, he left a lasting imprint overseas, particularly in public health. One of his biggest accomplishments is also one of his most overlooked: the near total eradication of Guinea worm disease, a painful parasitic infection for which there is no treatment or vaccine. In 1986, it afflicted an estimated 3.5 million people, mostly in Africa and Asia.

From bird strike to deadly plane crash

As officials race to investigate the plane crash in South Korea on Sunday that killed 179 people, a central question has emerged: What happened during the four minutes between the pilot’s urgent report of a bird strike and the plane’s fatal crash?

Analysts are considering several factors, including a concrete wall near the runway that the plane slammed into. Most airports don’t have structures like it so close to their runways, experts said, but when they do, the walls are typically designed to break apart or absorb impact with minimal damage to a plane. This one appeared far more solid. Here’s what else we know so far.

Two women hugging each other, their backs to the camera, looking out on snow.

Ann Harris, left, and her daughter Avaree have accused an Instagram photographer of sexual misconduct. Kholood Eid for The New York Times

The men who groom child influencers on Instagram

For the past year, The Times has been investigating how a drive for online fame has created a marketplace on Instagram of girl influencers that has drawn an audience of adult men.

Some parents, who act as managers for their children, develop monetary relationships with the men, selling them images of the girls, chat sessions and even their worn leotards. We also found a network of men, many of them convicted of sex crimes, who groom children while under the guise of being a social media professional eager to help parents supercharge their children’s online presence. Read the investigation here.

MORE TOP NEWS

Roberta Kaplan, with a serious expression, stands next to E. Jean Carroll, who is smiling.

The writer E. Jean Carroll in September. Dave Sanders for The New York Times

Trump: President-elect Donald Trump failed to overturn a $5 million judgment that he sexually abused the writer E. Jean Carroll in the mid-1990s and later defamed her.
Cyberattacks: A state-sponsored actor in China hacked the U.S. Treasury Department, accessing employee workstations and unclassified documents, the White House said.
Gaza: At least five babies have died from the cold in the past week, as winter worsens the toll on a population traumatized by 15 months of conflict.
Lebanon: Though the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah is suspended in a fragile truce, Lebanon’s economic recovery is still reeling from the war.
Syria: Ahmed al-Shara, who led the rebel offensive that toppled Bashar al-Assad, said it could take up to four years for the country to hold elections.
Ukraine: The Biden administration is sending nearly $2.5 billion in assistance to Kyiv, continuing its rush of aid before Trump takes office.
U.S.: Trump endorsed Mike Johnson for another term as House speaker.
France: Dominique Pelicot, who admitted to drugging his wife for years and inviting men to join him in raping her, won’t appeal his conviction.
Europe: A weather pattern of dense clouds and low sun and wind, known as the “dark doldrums,” can increase electricity prices and stoke political tensions.

Sports

Soccer: A.C. Milan has appointed Sérgio Conceição as head coach.
Tennis: What would happen to the sport if rules or scoring changed?
Chess: How Magnus Carlsen’s jeans sparked a chess controversy.

MORNING READ

A car with its headlights shining drives up a road in a neighborhood that lacks electrical power.

A neighborhood without power in Quito, Ecuador. Federico Rios Escobar for The New York Times

Just a decade ago, the small, resource-rich nation of Ecuador was embarking on a bold transition to hydroelectric power. But then a drought emptied its once abundant rivers and its reservoirs, leading to power outages of up to 14 hours a day.

Some fear this is the beginning of a larger global crisis: Abnormally dry weather in recent years has drained hydropower all over the world.

Lives lived: Olivia Hussey, best known for her lead performance in the 1968 film adaptation of “Romeo and Juliet,” died on Friday at 73.

CONVERSATION STARTERS

A close-up of two hands reaching into a bag filled with dice of many colors and shapes.

Using many-sided dice, Dungeons & Dragons players adjust the skills of their characters. Simon Simard for The New York Times

Roll for diversity: Dungeons & Dragons replaced “race” with “species” and separated several character traits from biological identity. Some players, and Elon Musk, are upset.
Crystal ball: This is what we think we’ll wear, eat, buy, believe and desire in 2025.
A moment lost: Breaking had a 50-year journey from the streets of New York to the Paris Games. The celebration became a debacle.

We hope you’ve enjoyed this newsletter, which is made possible through subscriber support. Subscribe to The New York Times .

ARTS AND IDEAS

Janus and Sideshow Films, via Associated Press, Fox, David Malosh for The New York Times, Kristina Dittmar for The New York Times

The best of 2024

During a year defined by chaos and uncertainty around the world, a chance to escape, if only for a moment, was welcome. Many of us turned to books, movies and TV; others found comfort in cooking (or perhaps a glass of wine). Some reveled in the brighter corners of the internet and social media.

Here’s what we’ll remember from the lighter side of 2024.

The Times Book Review choose the top 10 fiction and nonfiction books.
Episodes of “The Bear,” “Blue Lights,” “Chimp Crazy” and others topped critics’ list of standout moments in television.
Our film critics ranked their 10 favorite movies.
You loved these 25 Times Cooking recipes. And here are our 16 favorite cookbooks.
Our chief wine critic focused on 12 younger, more accessible bottles for his year-end list.
These are the 36 pop culture moments that lived rent-free in our heads.

By channeling guts and grit into their work, these 10 performers broke away from the pack.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Christopher Testani for The New York Times

Cook: Crab-stuffed mushrooms are rich in flavors that complement each other nicely.

Test: You watched the film this year, but do you know the book that inspired it? Try our quiz.

Admire: This year, we led readers on more than 125 home tours in 28 countries. Here are our most read installments.

Play: Spelling Bee, the Mini Crossword, Wordle and Sudoku. Find all our games here.

That’s it for today. See you tomorrow. — Gaya

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