Ted Turner, visionary who transformed news with CNN, dies at 87

Ted Turner, the media mogul who founded CNN and revolutionized television news, has died at the age of 87.

He passed away peacefully Wednesday, surrounded by his family, according to a statement from Turner Enterprises.

Turner launched CNN on June 1, 1980, creating the world's first 24-hour all-news cable network.

The idea was widely ridiculed at the time. Critics called it "Chicken Noodle News." It went on to change journalism forever.

In 1991, Time magazine named him Man of the Year for "influencing the dynamic of events and turning viewers in 150 countries into instant witnesses of history." That same year, CNN's coverage of the Persian Gulf War, the first war ever broadcast live, proved his vision right.

Beyond CNN, Turner built a media empire that included TNT, Turner Classic Movies, the Cartoon Network and the Superstation WTBS. He also owned the Atlanta Braves and the Atlanta Hawks.

He later sold his networks to Time Warner in 1996 for nearly $7.5 billion. The AOL-Time Warner merger in 2000 eventually cost him most of his fortune and his role at the company he built.

Turner was also a committed philanthropist. In 1997, he pledged $1 billion to the United Nations. He became one of the largest private landowners in North America, owning 2 million acres across 28 properties, and played a key role in bringing bison back from near extinction.

He was diagnosed with Lewy body dementia in 2018.

CNN Chairman and CEO Mark Thompson paid tribute to the late founder. He said, “Turner was and always will be the presiding spirit of CNN,” adding, “He is the giant on whose shoulders we stand.”

Turner is survived by his five children, 14 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.