WATCHING TODAY:

1. How China beat out the US to dominate South America: Bloomberg reports no province is too small or remote for Beijing’s careful attention.

2. Life on ‘Mars’: The strangers pretending to colonize the planet – in Utah: Guardian reports to study life on the red planet, people from around the world volunteer to live with strangers in the middle of nowhere.

3. French Socialist Anne Hidalgo urged to quit presidential race: The Times reports Hidalgo urged step aside to spare the left’s blushes, grandee tells Paris mayor.

4. Do something you suck at: Michael Easter writes trying new things is the antidote to your pandemic malaise.

5. China loves Eileen Gu. But it’s getting complicated. WSJ reports the San Francisco-born free skiing star is widely adored in her adopted home country, but more critical voices have emerged—and vanished.