The traditional Western-centric understanding of modernization is challenged by the emergence of Chinese modernization, a socialist model with distinctly Chinese characteristics. This study focuses on Malaysian media's portrayal of Chinese modernization, given the strong political, economic, and cultural ties between China and Malaysia, particularly within the context of the Belt and Road Initiative. The 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries provides a timely backdrop for this research. The potential for misunderstanding and stigmatization in international media coverage necessitates a careful examination of how Malaysian media constructs and interprets the narrative of Chinese modernization. This research utilizes corpus-assisted critical discourse analysis to provide a systematic and representative analysis, overcoming limitations of purely qualitative methods.

The concept of modernization, originating in the Renaissance, has evolved through distinct phases in Western history, characterized by capitalist private ownership and a modern state. However, Chinese modernization presents a unique model, distinct from the Western paradigm. Scholars have explored the unique political aspects of the Chinese model and criticized the equation of modernization with Westernization. Existing research on political discourse, nation image, and communication strategies provides a theoretical foundation, but research specifically on foreign media’s construction of the discourse surrounding Chinese modernization remains limited. This study aims to fill this gap by focusing on the Malaysian media’s construction of the discourse, enriching understanding of the international communication of Chinese modernization.

This study employs corpus critical discourse analysis, combining qualitative discourse analysis with quantitative corpus analysis techniques. This approach addresses the limitations of subjectivity and selectivity inherent in traditional qualitative analysis by using a large corpus of real-world data, ensuring objectivity and systematicity. The research focuses on three key questions: 1. What discourse strategies are employed by Malaysian media regarding Chinese modernization? 2. What are Malaysian media's attitudes towards China's modernization? 3. How is the discourse system of Chinese modernization constructed in Malaysian media? The study involved the following steps: **Step 1: Research Contextualization:** The study establishes the context of Chinese modernization as presented in Malaysian media, considering Malaysia's close relationship with China. **Step 2: Data Collection and Sample Selection:** 192 news reports related to Chinese modernization were collected from October 16, 2022, to October 16, 2023, from 14 influential Malaysian media outlets. Reports were categorized into positive, negative, and neutral sentiments based on pre-defined criteria. **Step 3: Keyword Analysis:** Keyword analysis, using the British National Corpus (BNC) as a benchmark and AntConc 4.2.4 software, identified and ranked keywords to understand the dominant narratives and frames in the Malaysian media coverage of Chinese modernization. **Step 4: Qualitative Analysis:** Using Fairclough's model of critical discourse analysis (CDA), the study qualitatively analyzed language choices, syntactic structures, metaphors, and narrative strategies to understand how Chinese modernization is constructed and portrayed in the Malaysian media.

The keyword analysis revealed a high frequency of words like "China," "Chinese," "development," "Xi," "modernization," and terms related to international cooperation and relations, reflecting a multi-faceted view of Chinese modernization in the Malaysian media. The top 100 keywords highlighted the prominence of political leadership, economic development, and international cooperation as key themes. KWIC analysis of key phrases provided insights into the specific contexts in which these keywords were used, revealing both positive and occasionally critical perspectives. The qualitative analysis, categorizing reports as positive, neutral, or negative, found that 83.9% of the reports expressed a positive attitude towards Chinese modernization, 10.9% were neutral, and 5.2% were negative. This positive sentiment was particularly strong in certain media outlets like China Press and Nanyang Siang Pau, while The Star showed a higher proportion of negative reports. Specific examples from the corpus demonstrated the range of narrative strategies, from celebratory affirmation of Chinese achievements to more critical perspectives influenced by geopolitical considerations. Positive reporting highlighted China's economic success, its unique model of modernization, and the benefits of China-Malaysia cooperation. Neutral reporting presented factual information without explicit bias, while negative reporting sometimes reflected skepticism or concerns about specific aspects of Chinese modernization, such as economic slowdown or military expansion.

The findings address the research questions by demonstrating the diverse but predominantly positive and neutral discourse surrounding Chinese modernization in the Malaysian media. The high frequency of positive sentiment reflects both Malaysia's recognition of China's economic progress and the influence of China's public diplomacy efforts. The presence of critical voices, however, showcases the complexities of geopolitical relations and competing narratives. The study's methodology, using both quantitative and qualitative methods, provides a robust understanding of how meaning is constructed in media reporting, highlighting the role of language, framing, and narrative strategies in shaping public perception.

This study reveals a nuanced and multifaceted discourse of Chinese modernization in Malaysian media, predominantly positive but encompassing critical perspectives. The findings suggest the need for further research to explore the long-term impact of media representations on public opinion and Sino-Malaysian relations. Future research could expand the timeframe and scope of the data analysis, investigate the influence of media ownership and editorial policies, and examine the role of social media in shaping public perception.

The study is limited by its focus on a specific one-year period and a particular set of media outlets. The generalizability of the findings might be enhanced by extending the timeframe and including a broader range of Malaysian media sources, including online platforms and social media. Further research could also explore the audience reception and the impact of these media portrayals on public opinion in Malaysia.