Abstract
Malaysia is a pluralistic society which consists of three major racial groups, the Malay, the Chinese and the Indians who each keep their own language. In recent studies, however, the essential language problem in this society is based on a class structure which crosses racial lines. That is, English for the elite, and the other languages for the non-elite which include Malay, the national language. The mass media are also in the arena of this conflict. In this paper, the English media are shown to be gaining strength in response to the context of "Vision 2020" announced by Prime Minister Dr.Mahatir. "Vision 2020" is intended to enable this country to catch up with developed countries on the media scene as a clear manifestation of the elite's efforts to keep up with the international information market.
