I don't know starting when the public opinion has been likened to flowing water in Taiwan, meaning the mainstream mindset, especially on political issues, is so easily influenced that it keeps changing as fast as water in a flowing river.  But who or what has the power to influence ordinary people?  Media, you may say.  Probably right.

During autocratic stage, the limited members of news media were government's propagandists.  Therefore, most people took what they were told by media for granted:  ROC was the sole regime representing China. we were genuine Chineses living in Taiwan, and we had to emancipate our compatroits from oppression imposed by "renegade" PRC in the Mainland.  Thus in that time, there was no problem for the islanders claimed that they are Chineses; no problem for our diplomats strived to make other countries recognize we were the sole government representing China, lest others think otherwise.  So the gavernment hewed to the "One-China" policy, media boosted the notion, and people believed and accepted it. 

Time changed.  ROC was expelled from UN in 1971, diplomatic break-ups with other major countries ensued and climaxed in that with America at 1979.  Later on democratic movements appeared and developed, the marshal law was abolished, and ban on media lifted.  Had social atmosphere also changed?  Not exactly, for President Chiang Ching-kuo still stuck by "One China", so everybody, especially the media, followed. and ordinary people still regarded themselves as Chinese, though as Taiwanese also.  Since President Lee and President Chen took over, everything has changed.  Under their de-China campaign, aggravated by the so-called "educational reform", tampering history actually, had resulted in a reality that 90% of the islanders, especially those under 30, had not regarded themselves as Chinese any longer.  Hadn't any media critized that political distortion?  They had, but feebly.  Any opposition to the ambience of "political correctness" would have endanger their business, so they opted to keep silence.  So the government and the media jointly manipulate the public opinion by stirring up populist mood in favor of them.  Both Lee and Chen were not autocratic leaders, still they were able to change islanders' self-identity.   

Now President Ma are confronting a paradoxical situation: more and more reliance on Mainland China economically versus more and more alienation of the islanders towards Mainland China politically.  The situation worsens and looms large if it is not taken good care of.  Mr. Ma, you are the leader.  Please do something to tackle with the situation.  You can't change the inexorable trend of China's rising, but you must have known better what to do to alleviate that paradox.  Please don't cater to the "mainstream mindset" any more.  You are the leader, you can do it, unless you are really contented with that stupid "maintaining status quo forever".  FYI, where to start?  Reverse those tampered history text books first, and pay no attention to those media and TV pundits!  Also please keep in your mind an ancient saying: 君子之德風，小人之德草，草上之風必偃.