Ted Turner, Father of 24-Hour News and CNN Founder, Dies at 87

Ted Turner, the media maverick and philanthropist who founded CNN a pioneering 24-hour network that revolutionized television news died peacefully on Wednesday, surrounded by his family, according to a statement from Turner Enterprises. He was 87.

The Cause of Death
Turner's family confirmed he died after a long battle with Lewy Body Dementia. CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer announced his death on air, reading from a family statement.

From Billboards to Broadcasting History

Robert Edward Turner III was born on November 19, 1938, in Cincinnati. After his father died by suicide in 1963, he took over the family billboard advertising company, becoming its president and CEO. He then shifted into television, taking a money-losing UHF station in Atlanta and transforming it into the foundation of a media empire.

Turner's purchase of a struggling Atlanta station in 1970 was his first move into television. Ten years later, that became the flagship of his nationwide Turner Broadcasting System, the profits from which he used to launch CNN. CNN went on the air in 1980 as the first 24-hour cable news network, gaining traction in the United States and later internationally becoming a key news source during the 1990–1991 Gulf War, delivering extensive live coverage via satellite.

Building a Media Empire
Nicknamed "the mouth of the South" for his brash pronouncements; Turner used his Atlanta cable station as the foundation for a media empire, launching a wave of channels including Turner Network Television, the Cartoon Network, and Turner Classic Movies.

Turner was Time Magazine's Man of the Year in 1991. When he sold the Turner system to Time Warner, he added $1 billion to his income within nine months money he then famously donated to the United Nations, one-third of his entire wealth at the time.

A Life Beyond Media
Turner was also an internationally known yachtsman, a conservationist who became one of the foremost landowners in the United States, and a philanthropist who founded the United Nations Foundation. He played a crucial role in reintroducing bison to the American West and even created the Captain Planet cartoon to educate kids about the environment.

Tributes
CNN Worldwide CEO Mark Thompson said in a statement: "Ted was an intensely involved and committed leader, intrepid and fearless and always willing to back a hunch and trust his own judgment. He was and always will be the presiding spirit of CNN. Ted is the giant on whose shoulders we stand."

His Legacy in His Own Words
In his autobiography, Turner mused about his own tombstone, writing that in his later years he was leaning toward the inscription: "I Have Nothing More to Say." He is survived by his five children, 14 grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. A private family service is planned, with a public memorial to follow at a later date.

Mustapha Bature Sallama.
Medical/ Science Communicator,
Private Investigator, Criminal investigation and Intelligence Analysis.

International Conflict Management and Peace Building.USIP

[email protected]
+233-555-275-880