Articles like these seem to suggest a different level of cultural awareness of ME in the UK (as opposed to the US).
Although there was a considerable amount of US press attention (mainly in magazines) given to CFS, née Chronic EBV, in the 1980's, so far as I am aware, articles on overcoming CFS, let alone ME, are all but unheard of in the mainstream or even tabloid press in the States today. A news presenter on US TV could never introduce a story by just using the terms "CFS" or "ME" without spelling out what the abbreviations meant. Though some people would have heard of "chronic fatigue syndrome" in the US, I don't think the percentage would be very high.
To an outsider, this seems like a double-edged sword in the UK. The greater awareness is potentially for the good, but it seems mainly driven by those who would like to sway public opinion toward the "nothing to see here - just some emotional/motivational issues" point of view.
The two issues may go hand in hand. Where there's little public awareness, there's little need to control the message. Ironically, the more you tell the public it's nothing... the more you have to tell the public it's nothing.