Updated at 4:49 p.m. ET : Fox News host Geraldo Rivera apologized Tuesday — sort of — for saying Trayvon Martin's hoodie had as much to do with his death as George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch captain who shot the teen.
"Heard petition demands my apology to Trayvon's parents," he said on his Facebook page. "Save effort: I deeply apologize for any hurt I caused — that is not my goal or intent."
Rivera elaborated on his thoughts in an email to Politico.com, offering an apology while also noting that earlier an unnamed "prominent black conservative" had commented on "my 'very practical and potentially life-saving campaign urging black and Hispanic parents not to let their children go around wearing hoodies.'"
Then Tuesday afternoon, Rivera made it clear on his radio show that he wasn't apologizing for linking Martin's hoodie to his slaying, Erik Wemple, a media blogger for The Washington Post, reported.
"I apologize for hurting people's feelings. I don't back down from my message," Rivera said. " ... Don't be a 911 call waiting to happen."
Last week on "Fox & Friends," Rivera stated that "I think the hoodie is as much responsible for Trayvon Martin’s death as George Zimmerman was."
Rivera later acknowledged that his own son was "ashamed" of him for stating that.
Rivera insisted he was only trying to protect children. “I remain absolutely convinced of what I said about asking for trouble," he stated. "There’s trouble enough for minority boys and young men not to provoke mad responses from paranoid jerk offs."
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