A Model Apology

If Paula Deen really wants to repent, she'll have to go the whole hog

Illustration by Tomasz Walenta for TIME; Deen: Jim Spellman / Getty Images

Public apologies are useless. Sure, we all enjoy them, but they don't make people forgive you. And a lot of times, they aren't even entertaining. The confession and the crying are great, but the part when you say you're sorry and will change and explain why blah, blah, blah bores us. There's a reason crowds have historically gathered for executions and stonings but wouldn't walk half a block to witness a tearful admission followed by a royal pardon.

So I wasn't expecting much from the video triptych that Paula Deen released June 21 to apologize for what the Food Network star...

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