NEW YORK (AP) – Don Imus returned to radio Monday with two black cast members, a list of high-powered guests – and a pledge that he had learned his lesson from his racist and sexist insult of the Rutgers women’s basketball team.

In an apologetic monologue before a live audience, Imus invoked his recovery from drug and alcohol addiction in describing his road to recovery of sorts from his firing eight months ago. Just like his stumble into addiction in the 1980s, Imus had hit rock bottom again after calling the Rutgers team “nappy-headed hos.”

“I analogize it to being an alcoholic and a drug addict, which I also am. If you get into recovery, as I am for 20-some years now, you have the opportunity to be a better person, to have a better life than you ordinarily would have had. And that’s true in this situation,” he said.

Imus – wearing his trademark cowboy hat – made his return before a boisterous audience that cheered him on several occasions as he again apologized for his actions and vowed to be a different host this time around.

Shortly after the program began, Imus introduced his new cast, including two black comedians, Karith Foster and Tony Powell. Also returning was Bernard McGuirk, the producer who instigated the Rutgers comment and was fired as well.

Imus, known for his high-profile guests, started his return on a similar level, with a lineup that included noted presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin and Democrat Chris Dodd and Republican John McCain, both presidential hopefuls.

McCain thanked Imus for having him on. “Welcome back, old friend,” he said.

Those who had led the criticism of Imus were muted in their remarks over his return. The Rev. Al Sharpton, one of the strongest voices calling for his firing, said Imus had a right to make a living and could return to radio. “Imus was fired. The move to hold people accountable was won,” Sharpton said. “Whether he can, in the course of time, redeem himself, time will tell.”

Kathy Times, vice president of broadcast for the National Association of Black Journalists, said, “Will he emerge as someone who has learned his lesson, or choose to continue the actions of his past? I certainly hope it’s the former, and the airwaves will be a respectful representation of the owners – the American public.”

Imus told his audience that he found an opportunity to start his recovery after meeting the very women he had offended. He described an emotional, four-hour meeting in New Jersey with the entire Rutgers team on April 12 – the same day CBS fired him. One woman was so offended that she got in his face and screamed – “you could just feel the heartbreak,” he said.

“I don’t know if it’s melodramatic to describe it as a life-changing experience, but it was pretty close,” he said. “I was there to try to save my life.”

“I think things worked out the way they should have worked out,” he said. “We now have the opportunity to have a better program. … So I will never say anything in my lifetime that will make any of these young women at Rutgers regret or feel foolish that they accepted my apology and forgave me.”

While Imus pledged to use his new show to talk about race relations, he added: “Other than that, not much has changed. Dick Cheney is still a war criminal, Hillary Clinton is still Satan and I’m back on the radio.”

One radio watcher predicted that Imus will play it safe in his new gig, but that including two black cast members was a wise move.

“I think at this point, the issue about Imus vs. the elements of the black community that were offended by him will become old news, because I don’t think that he’s going to go out of his way to do anything foolish that would be offensive to them,” said Michael Harrison, publisher of Talkers magazine, an industry trade journal. “But I think he’ll continue to be the equal opportunity offender which people know he is. I don’t think the issue of his relationship with the black community is really that big an issue anymore. However, having black comedians on the show can’t hurt.”

Foster says she is excited about the opportunity, playing a crucial role in giving the show the proper perspective.

“I think I can speak from the viewpoint of an African-American, and especially one who can see and understand both sides,” she said. “I see and can understand where everybody’s coming from, which I think makes for a great mediator.”

Imus’ resurrection is just the latest in his four-decade career. The veteran shock jock has emerged intact in the past after assorted firings and bad publicity.

In addition to being aired on the Citadel Broadcasting-owned station, WABC, the new program will air on four other Citadel stations and 17 other stations owned by other companies, said Phil Boyce, program director of WABC. Other stations are expected to sign up to carry Imus in the coming weeks, Boyce said. Terms of his contract have not been disclosed.

The show also will be simulcast on cable’s RFD-TV, owned by the Rural Media Group Inc. RFD reaches nearly 30 million homes, but with Imus on board the 24-hour cable network hopes to boost that number to 50 million over the next two years.

In keeping with the theme of recovery and second chances, the Hanley Center for addiction treatment is a sponsor for the show this week. Imus once received treatment at the center.

Among the fans gathered for the Imus comeback was David Walter from Kansas City. He said he thought the reaction to Imus’ remarks was “overblown” and a “double standard.”

“It was a comedy context, a comedy show. He said something that was supposed to be funny and everybody beat him over the head with it,” Walter said.

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On the Net:

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AP-ES-12-03-07 1815EST