China's Belt and Road and Digital Silk Road influence expansion has succeeded because recipient countries — including U.S. allies — value the economic visibility more than they fear the growing dependencies, and the coming nationwide social credit system gives Beijing a tool to convert those ties into manipulation and leverage; government social-media monitoring demonstrably damages civil liberties, and where civil liberties fall, democracy falls with them.

— In our words · Source: The 21st Century Scarlet Letter: China's Use of Digital Global Influence to Gain Power and Weaken U.S. Leadership (Brandi Y. Williams)