Atlanta, United States. Ted Turner, the brash sportsman and entrepreneur whose ambition and instincts led to a media empire that included CNN, has died at 87, CNN reported on Wednesday citing a press release from Turner Enterprises.
Illness and public profile
In September 2018, Turner revealed that he had Lewy body dementia, a degenerative nerve disease. He was known by several nicknames, including the “Mouth of the South,” “Captain Outrageous,” and “Terrible Ted.”
Building a media empire
Turner became a billionaire after taking over his father’s billboard business, buying a television station in 1970 and expanding it into a television group. He became one of the most powerful figures in U.S. media and entertainment, with networks specializing in news, sports, re-runs, and old movies.
He later added the MGM/UA movie studio to his holdings before merging Turner Broadcasting System with Time Warner in 1996. Turner headed the new company’s cable networks division and was its leading shareholder, but he eventually lost control of his networks after struggling to fit into a corporate system.
Sports, philanthropy, and activism
Turner became one of the world’s leading environmentalists, one of the largest land owners in the United States, and a major philanthropist, giving $1 billion to the United Nations.
In the 1970s he owned the Atlanta Braves baseball team and the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association, and skippered his yacht the Courageous to the America’s Cup. The many women in his life included Oscar-winning actress Jane Fonda.
In 1986 he started the Goodwill Games and two years later bought a wrestling organization to provide more TV content. Citing concerns about nuclear war, he co-founded the Nuclear Threat Initiative in 2001.
Forbes estimates Turner’s fortune at $2.8 billion.
What do you consider Ted Turner’s most lasting impact on media and public life?
