By Mark Abrams

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - A nationally-recognized expert on bioethics says we shouldn’t be too quick to buy in to the Lance Armstrong apology tour.

Arthur Caplan, who spent years at the University of Pennsylvania and now calls New York University home, says Lance Armstrong’s doping denials over the years rang hollow to anyone who closely followed cycling.

“We all knew he cheated. In fact, everybody was cheating. It was so bad that the sport of cycling basically looked to most people like pro wrestling.”

Caplan says Armstrong’s bigger issues lie in the cover-up and with the people he hurt.

“He basically harassed anybody who dared tell the truth about what he had done, and he acted in a way that I think was ethically reprehensible toward some people who couldn’t easily defend themselves.”

Caplan says Armstrong’s admissions are selfishly aimed at gaining public redemption and a return to a favorable public image.