Ted Turner, the media entrepreneur who founded CNN, the world’s first 24-hour cable news network, has died at the age of 87.
Turner Enterprises confirmed that he died at his home near Tallahassee, Florida, after living with Lewy body dementia, a condition he publicly disclosed in 2018.
Born Robert Edward Turner III on November 19, 1938, he took over his father’s billboard advertising business in 1963 following his father’s death. He later expanded into broadcasting, building a media empire that included WTBS, TNT, and Cartoon Network.
In 1980, Turner launched CNN, introducing continuous television news coverage at a time when 24-hour broadcasting was widely considered commercially unviable. The network later grew into one of the world’s most influential news organisations.
Beyond broadcasting, Turner also owned the Atlanta Braves baseball team, which won the World Series in 1995. He was also involved in entertainment projects, including the creation of the animated series Captain Planet and the Planeteers.
Turner was widely recognised for his philanthropy, including a $1 billion donation to the United Nations and his contributions to environmental conservation through land preservation initiatives.
He was married three times, including to actress Jane Fonda from 1991 to 2001, and had five children.
Tributes from across the media and business sectors have described him as a transformative figure whose innovations reshaped global news coverage.
