CNN Founder Ted Turner Dies at Age 87

Overview

• Tuner Enterprises confirmed Wednesday that Ted Turner died at 87, with no cause of death disclosed.
• Mark Thompson, the CEO of CNN Worldwide, praised Turner as the network’s guiding spirit and a fearless leader.
• Turner pioneered satellite-fed cable, created the first U.S. superstation TBS, and in 1980 launched CNN as the first round-the-clock news channel.
• He became a major philanthropist and conservationist, pledging $1 billion to the United Nations and protecting vast tracts of land while rebuilding bison herds.
• In 2018 he disclosed a diagnosis of Lewy body dementia, a progressive brain disease that can cause memory problems, movement issues, and visual hallucinations, though no link to his death has been stated.