POLITENESS AND SELFCENSORSHIP IN CHATROOM DISCOURSE

In this borderless world, Internet has become an important tool of communication for teenagers. It provides the opportunity to interact with thousands of people from all over the world at any time. Focusing on the new medium of synchronous computer mediated communication; namely the MSN Instant Messenger, this study seeks to examine the language and social behavior of Malaysian teenagers. This paper also discusses the notion of self-censorship, which is frequently used by teenagers in this study as a strategy to preserve politeness and maintain solidarity amongst chatters.