The people John mentioned have chosen to perform acts of public contrition because they've exhibited behaviors that conflict with the public personae they've adopted. It has nothing to do with who they really are, only the public perception of who they are. If they don't get their personae patched up, they're going to lose a lot of money and prestige.

There've been plenty of other public figures who'd just say "Fuck you! Get over it!" They've adopted somewhat antisocial, non-PC public personae and nobody expects them to be contrite. Can you imagine John Belushi or Sam Kenison apologizing for insulting someone?