Ted Turner, the founder of CNN, has died at the age of 87. Born in Ohio and raised in Atlanta, Turner – nicknamed “The Mouth of the South” for his direct and unfiltered character – built a media empire that included the first cable ‘superstation’, as well as highly successful channels dedicated to films and cartoons, and professional sports teams such as the Atlanta Braves.
A multifaceted figure, Turner was also an internationally renowned sailor, philanthropist – founder of the United Nations Foundation – and activist committed to the global elimination of nuclear weapons. A convinced environmentalist, he became one of the largest landowners in the United States and contributed decisively to the reintroduction of bison to the American West, as well as promoting ecological awareness among young people with the creation of the cartoon Captain Planet.
His most audacious intuition, however, remained that of offering real-time news from all over the world, at all hours of the day and night, an idea initially greeted with skepticism but which ended up changing the media landscape forever.
In 1991 he was named «Person of the Year» by Time magazine for having «influenced the dynamics of events and transformed spectators in 150 countries into immediate witnesses of history». After selling his networks to Time Warner, Turner gradually withdrew from the business, but continued to consider CNN “the greatest achievement” of his life.
“Ted was a deeply involved leader, courageous and willing to bet on his own intuitions,” said CNN Worldwide President and CEO Mark Thompson. “He is and will remain the guiding spirit of CNN, the giant on whose shoulders we stand.”
In 2018, shortly before his 80th birthday, Turner revealed that he suffered from Lewy body dementia, a progressive neurodegenerative disease. At the beginning of 2025 he was hospitalized for a mild form of pneumonia, from which he recovered in a rehabilitation facility.
Turner leaves behind five children, fourteen grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.