Most Malaysians also speak English very well, especially compared to the rest of SE Asia.
I have spoken to Americans back home who couldn't even point out Malaysia on a map, and even more who just write it off as a "Muslim country" despite it being secular and very diverse.
I would say it has less to do with accessibility, and more to do with Americans being skittish travelers who have been brainwashed into thinking that any country with a couple Muslims is a scary place.
I said it has to do with how the country presents itself. If you polled people going to Asia - you'd see a huge # of them would be going to Thailand or Bali (80/20) - likely due to them being portrayed in the media quite a bit. Indonesia is also significantly Muslim.
You seem to be looking for a fight where there isn't one. Maybe you should reconsider your assumptions about Americans.
I'm not looking for a fight, I am just genuinely interested in why Americans are an under represented group of travelers in the country where I currently live and work.
So far the majority of the replies that attempted to give a reason included the fact that it is a Muslim country, despite that being as true as America being a Christian country.
couldn't even point out Malaysia on a map, and even more who just write it off as a "Muslim country"
I'd be very interested in meeting this population that "couldn't even point out Malaysia on a map" but know that it is majority Muslim.
From the SE asian island-ish countries, I can think the ordering of "who goes where" would look something like this - Thailand, Bali, Vietnam, Phillippines, Malaysia - just based on country marketing + anecdotal conversations alone.
This is coming from someone who was nomad-ing around for 2 1/2 years too.