BP 's top official apologizes in TV ads that began airing Thursday . The ad features a man who says he was "shocked and saddened" by the oil spill, but now wants to help clean up the mess. ( CNN ) -- If he was unknown to the American public before , Tony Hayward is fast becoming a household name , answering rapid-fire questions about the Gulf of Mexico oil spill in newspaper stories and television shows . Fishermen , coastal merchants angered by comment .
BP 's top official apologizes in TV ads that began airing Thursday . The ad features a man who says he was "shocked and saddened" by the oil spill, but now wants to help clean up the mess. Fishermen , coastal merchants angered by comment .