To apologise or not to

Admitting to a mistake and being apologetic is a good thing. But when the apology is a needless one, the problem compounds. That is, the person in question now knows you messed up on something. The smarter thing would have been to shut up and let it by.

The London Evening Standard may have just apologised for no reason. The idea behind the 'Sorry London' campaign was to resurrect a damaged brand. As to whether it will give the desired result needs to be seen. There's even a possibility of the consumer now realising that Evening Standard's all along given them news that was of no consequence. Then the roll of the dice may go awry for them. The angered consumer who knows he's been cheated, can even turn away.

Apologies can restore trust, only if the wronged consumer who knows he's been wronged, is willing to forgive. Also note, a needless apology can create a bigger mess than the one it intends to solve.