I would have to disagree with you on that point. You have to look at Artest's motivation in doing this interview. Clearly the only reason he went on TV this morning was to promote his record company. He was dressed like a billboard (t-shirt and matching hat) and held up the CD three times in the course of the interview.
So when evaluating his performance, you have to look at him as a hip-hop record producer, not as member of an NBA team - as a playah, not a player.
By that standard, he performed brilliantly. He promoted the product, which is always job one. He solidified his credentials as a bad-a$$ thug, which is the public image which sells this particular type of record. But most importantly, he did not apologize. Apologizing is a cop-out, an admission of defeat. It is knuckling under to the Man. A hip-hop bad-a$$ must never knuckle under to the Man...
Sure, his NBA career is in shambles, but what else is the Commissioner going to do to him? Suspend him for life? That's just not gonna happen.
With respect, I don't really think you're disagreeing with me. I said that no one would have dressed that way who cared how "society at large" thinks about him. What you're saying is that Artest was appealing to his music market segment, which clearly is not society at large.