Ted Turner, the media entrepreneur who founded the U.S. cable news network CNN, has died at 87.
CNN reported on May 6 (local time) that Turner died at his home in Tallahassee, Florida, with family at his side. He had been living with progressive Lewy body dementia since 2018 and received treatment for pneumonia last year.
Born in 1938, Turner launched CNN, the world’s first 24-hour news channel, and in doing so helped change the way news is covered and consumed. He was an early proponent of the “superstation” model that carried local cable signals nationwide and later built networks including TNT, TCM and Cartoon Network.
At 24, Turner inherited his father’s large outdoor advertising business, Turner Outdoor Advertising, and stepped into the media industry. As CEO he moved aggressively: he bought local radio stations and in 1970 acquired Atlanta’s Channel 17. He rebranded it as WTCG, programmed sitcoms, films and baseball, and gradually grew a loyal audience.
Turner launched CNN in 1980, arguing there was a need for continuous news coverage. “If you work until 7 p.m. and come home, the news is already over,” he said. “I’m sure many people like me miss the evening TV news.”
CNN’s influence surged with its live reporting of the 1990 Gulf War. The network sent reporters to Baghdad and aired vivid footage of cities under U.S. air attack. While many outlets relied on official briefings, CNN brought the battlefield into viewers’ living rooms.
In 1996 Turner sold his broadcast networks to Time Warner for $7.5 billion (approximately 11 trillion KRW). He served as vice chairman of Time Warner until his resignation in 2003 and continued to be active in philanthropy in later years.
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