Examining Effective Communication During COVID-19 Through Prime Minister's Speeches: The Case of Malaysia

ABSTRACT

When the COVID-19 virus began spreading aggressively after its first detection, government of most countries impose mandated lockdowns to combat the virus. Subsequently, leaders communicate to their citizens through live telecast, which are usually presented in one language alongside sign language. This may have hindered communication within small ethnic and indigenous communities and thus risking lives. To seek an understanding of the sociolinguistic reality of the interplay and language practices in multilingual countries, this study examines 26 speeches presented by the Prime Minister of Malaysia. The analysis reveals that the main language used is Bahasa Melayu but the Prime Minister switches to English when emphasising important terms. Although the speeches were not translated into community languages, the analysis shows that the top five highest frequency words in both Bahasa Melayu and English transcripts were similar. This result indicates that although effective communication within small ethnic and indigenous communities may not be successful, the Malaysian government still cares about its citizens during the pandemic. The findings provide a snapshot of the language vitality in Malaysia, which acts as a wakeup call for nations that are keen about protecting their citizens while maintaining a multilingual identity. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022.