Remembering Ted Turner: CNN Pioneer and Hollywood Icon Jane Fonda’s Former Husband Passes at 87

Media mogul Ted Turner, the visionary behind CNN, has passed away at the age of 87.

Turner, whose groundbreaking contributions to the media landscape include founding the first 24-hour cable news channel, died on Wednesday, as confirmed by CNN.

Throughout his life, he was known for his larger-than-life personality and was often referred to as the ‘Mouth of the South’ for his candid and outspoken nature. Turner was married to actress Jane Fonda from 1991 until 2001 and is survived by his four children.

Beyond his pioneering work with CNN, Turner also constructed a vast media empire with numerous cable and satellite sports networks and was the long-time owner of the Atlanta Braves, shaping the world of sports entertainment for decades.

Turner founded CNN – the first 24-hour cable news channel – in 1980.

He was named Time’s ‘Man of the Year’ eleven years later for the station’s live coverage of current events.

CNN Worldwide CEO Mark Thompson acknowledged his passing in a statement.

A cause of death was not detailed, but Turner was known to be battling Lewy body dementia.

Ted Turner pass away aged 87 on Wednesday, according to CNN, which he founded

The billionaire media titan was once married to actress Jane Fonda. The pair are pictured together in Beverly Hills in 1990. The two divorced in 2001

‘He was and always will be the presiding spirit of CNN,’ Thompson wrote of Turner.

‘Ted is the giant on whose shoulders we stand, and we will all take a moment today to recognize him and his impact on our lives and the world.’

Thompson further touted the TNT founder as an ‘intensely involved and committed leader, intrepid, fearless and always willing to back a hunch and trust his own judgement.’

Turner officially resigned from Turner Broadcasting System – which includes CNN – in 2006. 

Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in November 1938, took over a faltering family billboard business after his father’s suicide before launching his television career with purchases of several radio stations and a struggling Atlanta station in 1970.

Within ten years, Turner managed to turn the channel around. He used the profits to help launch of CNN, which quickly gained traction in the United States and later internationally.   

The launch came as viewers were shifting from broadcast to cable, with CNN subsequently surfacing as a key source of news during the Persian Gulf War in the early 90s.

The channel’s success inspired the creation of several other 24-hour news channels since, including Fox News.

Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in November 1938, Turner took over a faltering family billboard business after his father’s suicide and transformed it into a sprawling media empire

Turner – seen here in Washington in 2013 – was also a major philanthropist, donating to several causes over the course of multiple decades

Turner’s television empire extended beyond CNN, however, with TBS and TNT, Turner Classic Movies and Cartoon Network among his other creations.

Turner also attempted to acquire CBS in the 80s but failed. He also owned Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) for a time, before selling off the storied studio for a fraction of what he paid to keep the rights to large portions of its film catalog. 

The shrewd business move helped launch both TNT and Turner Classic Movies, while also allowing Turner to curate content for a then-growing TBS. Films like Gone with the Wind and The Wizard of Oz filled out time slots, as did syndicated programs like the Andy Griffith Show. 

The deals continued – and grew in scope – in the 1990s, when Turner Broadcasting merged with Time Warner in 1996, making Turner vice chairman of a newly formed entertainment powerhouse.   

In 2001, Time Warner merged with America Online in a $165billion deal that was the billed as the biggest merger in corporate history.

The merger, however, failed within a decade, largely due to the fall of AOL, which used an inflated share price for the deal during the height of its success. Turner, the biggest shareholder, lost billions.

Then in his mid-60s and semi-retired, Turner lost roughly $8billion as a result, he admitted at the time.

His net worth, as of Wednesday, was estimated to be $2.8 billion, according to Forbes. The advertising business he inherited from his late father was worth $1million.

Turner’s television empire extended beyond CNN, with TBS and TNT, Turner Classic Movies and Cartoon Network among his other creations

Turner is seen as a guest on Meet the Press in 2008

Turner remained Time Warner’s vice chairman until 2003 and a board member until 2006.

His 50-year career is widely seen as groundbreaking.

David Zaslav, the CEO of Turner asset Warner Bros. Discovery, hailed Turner as ‘a visionary, a trailblazer, and a foundational force behind many of the brands that are central to Warner Bros. Discovery’ in his own statement.

‘Ted’s entrepreneurial spirit, creative ambition and willingness to take risks changed the media industry forever. 

‘He believed deeply in the power of ideas, in doing things differently and in building platforms that could inform, inspire and connect people around the world. 

‘That belief inspired generations of leaders, myself included. He did not just disrupt media. He transformed it,’ said Zaslav.

Turner revealed to CBS in 2018 that he was battling Lewy body dementia, a progresive brain disorder that he played down as ‘a mild case of what people have as Alzheimer’s.’

‘It’s similar to that, but not nearly as bad,’ Turner told then-CBS Sunday Morning host Ted Koppel. ‘Tired. Exhausted. That’s the main symptoms. And forgetfulness,’ he said.

Turner at the official CNN launch event in Atlanta, Georgia, in June 1980. The station is widely credited with revolutionizing how Americans consume news

Turner was named Time’s ‘Man of the Year’ in 1991 for the CNN’s live coverage of current events like the Persian Gulf War

Donald Trump paid Turner respects on Wednesday as well, with a post to Truth Social.

The president, after panning CNN’s current leadership, called the tycoon ‘one of the Greats of Broadcast History’.

Trump also hailed him as ‘a friend.’

‘Whenever I needed him, he was there, always willing to fight for a good cause!’