A non-apology ("we're sorry if anyone was offended") is a statement that adopts the form of an apology while dodging responsibility, shifting blame to the audience's reaction rather than the conduct. Audiences and journalists spot it instantly, and it typically deepens a crisis rather than closing it. Naming it is a warning: in most modern crises, a clear, specific, accountable apology outperforms the conditional non-apology that legal-driven instinct produces.