Weekly Media Trends: Gov't Budget & Week's Viral Hit

UK Government unveils Budget with controversial childcare and pension policies, while American student's study abroad nightmare goes viral

Childcare and pensions take centre stage in government's budget

The UK government has announced its financial plans in the latest budget, focusing on addressing issues important to voters in the next general election. The government has introduced two landmark policies: expanded free childcare and scrapping the pension cap. The former policy aims to provide 30 hours of free childcare per week to parents of three and four-year-olds, while the latter is driven by the need to keep doctors working longer and avoid hefty pension penalties.

The budget is interesting for economic and political geeks, as many decisions are far down the line and a problem for the next government. However, it did outline that we are on the election war footing. We are roughly 18 months from the next general election, so this is the time to start making important decisions to campaign for the election and the last to change to the unpopular ones.

While the pension cap policy is being painted as a tax cut for the rich, the expanded free childcare policy is expected to be popular among families as it will help to reduce childcare costs and allow parents to work more hours. The government has also announced additional funding to train more childcare professionals, which will help meet this service's demand.

It will be interesting to see how successful they will be in the long run. While they may be spun against the Tories, the details may be forgotten by polling day, and positive news about doctors' numbers may also emerge. Only time will tell how these policies will shape the political landscape in the coming months.

American student's viral essay sparks outrage

One of this week's most surprisingly viral hits was an Insider piece written by an American university student describing her less-than-fairy tale experience studying abroad in Florence. The first-hand essay written by an NYU journalism student received much internet ire for her descriptions of Italians as "hostile, inconsiderate and preposterous", her classmates as frivolous, and the general experience as "a nightmare". The critiques of Stacia Datskovska ranged from accusations of entitlement and obliviousness to anti-American-tinged tirades that her stupidity should be assumed. There was also THAT Amanda Knox tweet.

Ms Datskovska's article certainly makes for a toe-curling read. She writes of daydreaming about "summer flings with people who called me 'bella'" and "gelato that dripped down my fingers in the heart." But the piece's virality certainly doesn't mean her feelings are unique. Florence as a city is famously choc a bloc with American students often experiencing their first taste of life outside their own bubble. So perhaps some level of ignorance shouldn't be a surprise. As one sympathetic Twitter user pointed out:

"Everyone dunking on the Florence study abroad article must have never been a teenager and/or never gone back to look at what you wrote during that time. Thank goodness my undergrad columns are not online!"

Other legitimate concerns have been raised about the journalistic responsibility (or lack thereof) undertaken by Insider in publishing and naming a 19 year old student in an article that may or may not have been chosen for its ability to create online noise. Ms Datskovska however seems to be taking her fifteen seconds of infamy into her stride, telling BuzzFeed News "The lower people went, the more empowered I felt," and saying that she sees the experience as a "rite of passage" for any writer.