The media world has lost one of its most prominent figures. Ted Turner, a visionary and founder of the first 24-hour news station CNN, died peacefully on Wednesday at the age of 87, surrounded by his family. The man who fundamentally changed the way people consume information passed away after decades of building a vast empire that stretched from television to professional sports.
Turner's entrepreneurial journey began under tragic circumstances. At the age of 24, he took over the family billboard advertising business after his father committed suicide. He managed to build a media colossus from a regional company. A key moment was the launch of CNN in 1980. Although skeptics then derisively nicknamed the project “Chicken Noodle News,” Turner succeeded in pushing the concept of a twenty-four-hour news cycle, which became a global standard.
The expansion of his empire continued in the 1980s with the launch of CNN International and other themed channels such as TNT, Turner Classic Movies, and Cartoon Network. Turner was not only active in media; he also owned the sports teams Atlanta Braves and Atlanta Hawks. In 1996, he capped his media career by selling Turner Broadcasting to Time Warner for $7.5 billion. While a later merger with AOL brought him billions in losses, he remained one of the most influential figures in public life.
In later years, Turner focused on philanthropy and conservation. A significant step was his pledge to donate $1 billion to the United Nations. As the second-largest private landowner in North America (with over 2 million acres), he also played a crucial role in saving bison from extinction by building a herd of 51,000 animals.
“What Ted accomplished was as important to the world as the internet revolution,” said former Turner Broadcasting CEO Terry McGuirk.
Turner's legacy remains in the foundations of modern journalism. His ability to take risks and foresee the digital future of television created an environment in which all global media operate today. He left behind not only television networks but also extensive environmental projects that will continue after his death.