Ted Turner, the media mogul who founded the world’s first 24-hour cable news network, CNN, died at 87 on the 6th (local time). CNN and The New York Times reported that he passed away at his home in Tallahassee, Florida, surrounded by family. Turner was diagnosed in 2018 with progressive Lewy body dementia and received treatment for pneumonia last year.Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, Turner inherited his father’s large outdoor-advertising business, Turner Outdoor Advertising, at 24 and set out to build a media empire. The company carried heavy debt after his father’s struggles with alcohol and drug abuse. Advisors urged him to sell, but Turner expanded into radio and then moved into television in 1970. That year he bought Atlanta’s Channel 17 and began local TV broadcasting; in 1976 he converted the station to satellite distribution, vastly expanding his reach to cable subscribers nationwide. Turner pioneered the “superstation” model, using satellite technology to beam a local station across the country.
On June 1, 1980, he launched CNN, the world’s first 24-hour news channel. Turner pushed for round-the-clock news after noticing that people who worked late often missed the evening broadcast. He grew the news operation with CNN2 (now HLN) in 1982 and CNN International in 1985, and he later launched other cable outlets, including Turner Network Television (TNT) and Cartoon Network.
CNN lost about $2 million a month (approximately 2.67 billion KRW per month) during its first two years, but the network’s profile soared during the 1990 Gulf War, when it established a reputation for live, real-time war coverage. By Do Hyun-jung
