The fact that Danny Baker has been in the media for 40 years doesn't mean he intended his tweet to be a racist comment. He's not your average media person. He doesn't even have a mobile phone.
Of course he's aware of racism in football - monkey chants etc. He's made his disgust v clear over the years. But when he sees a cute pic of a dressed-u chimp, all he sees is 'cute pic of dressed up chimp' because he likes chimps, he grew up with the PG Tips ads, and dressing up famous people, regardless of colour, as animals is one of his themes. And it's never occurred to him to compare a black person to a chimp. Because, as he said, 'not having a diseased mind'. His Twitter fans pointed out to him the context, and he said it was a stomach-curdling moment.
I've listened to DB since GLR days, and his account of how it came about rings true to me. As a docker's son, he's anti-toff. I've never heard any suspicion of racism. He has a history with clashing swords with the BBC, who he thinks is run by Oxbridge stuffed shirts who look down on him. He's anti-establishment and doesn't like being told what to do. They rang him up to tell him he'd been sacked and gave him a pompous lecture instead of letting him explain.
His first reaction of outrage was decidedly off, but his formal apology went some way to putting it right, imo.
Of course he had to be sacked. But the idea that he's a closet racist who'd deliberately sacrifice his career for the sake of a silly joke just doesn't make sense.