Ted Turner, the media maverick and philanthropist who based NCS, a pioneering 24-hour community that revolutionized tv information, died Wednesday, in line with a information launch from Turner Enterprises. He was 87.
The Ohio-born Atlanta businessman, nicknamed “The Mouth of the South” for his outspoken nature, constructed a media empire that encompassed cable’s first superstation and standard channels for films and cartoons, plus skilled sports activities groups just like the Atlanta Braves.

Ted Turner
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Turner was additionally an internationally recognized yachtsman; a philanthropist who based the United Nations Foundation; an activist who sought the worldwide elimination of nuclear weapons; and a conservationist who grew to become one of the foremost landowners within the United States. He performed a essential function in reintroducing bison to the American west. He even created the Captain Planet cartoon to coach children concerning the setting.
But it was his audacious imaginative and prescient to ship information from around the globe in actual time, at all hours, that basically made him well-known – as soon as his concept lastly took off.
In 1991, Turner was named Time journal’s Man of the Year for “influencing the dynamic of events and turning viewers in 150 countries into instant witnesses of history.”
Turner ultimately offered his networks to Time Warner and later exited the enterprise, however continued to specific satisfaction in NCS, calling it the “greatest achievement” of his life.
“Ted was an intensely involved and committed leader, intrepid, fearless and always willing to back a hunch and trust his own judgement,” Mark Thompson, Chairman and CEO of NCS Worldwide, mentioned in a assertion. “He was and always will be the presiding spirit of NCS. 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.”
Just over a month earlier than his eightieth birthday in 2018, Turner revealed that he had Lewy physique dementia, a progressive mind dysfunction. In early 2025, Turner was hospitalized with a gentle case of pneumonia earlier than recovering at a rehabilitation facility.
Turner is survived by his 5 youngsters, 14 grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.
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