‘Dog’ apologizes in cable appearance
In an often-tearful interview aired live on Fox News' "Hannity & Colmes" talk show yesterday, Duane "Dog" Chapman stared into the camera and apologized for using the N-word in a taped conversation made public last week.
"This Dog can learn," he said after claiming that his use of the pejorative phrase was more in the spirit in which blacks use it among themselves -- a stance he said he has now abandoned.
The apology comes a few days after Chapman released a written apology to the public after he used the N-word multiple times in a phone conversation with his son, Tucker, referring to Tucker's girlfriend, Monique Shinnery. Chapman's son sold the tape to the National Enquirer, which released it a week ago.
"First of all, I owe Monique and Tucker an apology," said Chapman, star of the show "Dog the Bounty Hunter," suspended by A&E as a result of the fiasco. "My son knows my heart. Second of all, of course, the black people in America I owe an apology to. Whether how dark I think I am, I cannot say that word. I owe the rest of the people, whether they're black or not, in America an apology because people looked up to me. I've learned a lesson."
Chapman's appearance on the show was his first since the taped conversation was made public. He said that he wanted to apologize in person and felt that a written apology wasn't enough.
"I will do everything there is in my power to make sure that people have forgiven me. I will not stop until they say, 'Dog has been forgiven.' I am sorry," he said.
Chapman added: "I thought I was cool enough in the black world to be able to use that word as a brother to a brother. I'm not."
"I didn't really know until three or four days ago what that meant to black people," he added. "Of course, I know the story, I know America's story, but I never realized that that's like stabbing a black person in the heart. I would never do that to any kind of person."
An interview the National Enquirer conducted with Shinnery, who is black, aired during the program, in which she said: "I believe that Duane is a racist 'cause I've heard many times what he says about me, not just this one time, but a lot of things he says and a lot of things he does."
"I think it was good for A&E to take him off the air because he portrays to be a role model and he's not. He's the exact opposite," she added.
The Rev. Tim Storey, a friend of Chapman's, appeared on the show and said Chapman is not a racist. While Storey, who is black, said he was shocked to hear the taped conversation, he said, "I know deep down in his heart, he didn't mean it."
Meanwhile, at least two more companies -- Dr. Frank's Joint & Muscle Pain Relief and SiCap Industries LLC -- pulled ads off Chapman's show. The show was pulled off the air Friday while network officials conduct an investigation. It has not been canceled.
Chapman is scheduled to do a second live televised interview at 4 p.m. today on CNN's "Larry King Live."
