Ted Turner passed away as we speak, May 6, 2026, at the age of 87. Born in Ohio, he spent most of his grownup life in Atlanta, Georgia, and he was nicknamed “The Mouth of the South” for his outspoken nature. He was married to Jane Fonda from 1991 to 2001, and she referred to as him her favorite ex-husband. His media empire was anchored by NCS, the 24-hour information community that modified how Americans consumed information, and he additionally began fashionable channels for motion pictures and cartoons and owned skilled sports activities groups just like the Atlanta Braves. Turner was named Time journal’s Man of the Year in 1991. He was additionally an internationally recognized philanthropist who based the United Nations Foundation and a celebrated conservationist. As information of his passing unfold, tributes from colleagues, former world leaders, and the celebrities who knew him greatest started pouring in.
NCS CEO leads tributes: ‘The giant on whose shoulders we stand’
The farewell from the community he based was among the many most transferring. Mark Thompson, Chairman and CEO of NCS Worldwide, described Turner as “an intensely involved and committed leader, intrepid, fearless and always willing to back a hunch and trust his own judgment,” and mentioned Turner “was and all the time would be the presiding spirit of NCS.” Thompson added that Turner is “the giant on whose shoulders we stand.”
Jane Fonda remembers ex-husband Ted Turner: ‘The world is a greater place due to you’
Perhaps no public tribute carries extra private weight than that of his ex-wife, actress Jane Fonda. At Turner’s eightieth birthday celebration in 2018, Fonda declared: “You are a good man, Ted Turner, and the world is a better place because of you.”
The two married in 1991 in a union that shocked many. Ted Turner was referred to as a really achieved businessman whereas Jane Fonda was undeniably an outspoken progressive activist. However, the pair bonded over a shared curiosity concerning the world. “In his heart, Ted is not a wealthy, powerful, privileged person,” Fonda had beforehand mentioned in her HBO documentary, Jane Fonda in Five Acts, in accordance to Entertainment Tonight. “He’s a little boy who likes to play, and who has wild brilliance, and that’s what I was attracted to.”
Inside the NCS newsroom: How colleagues remembered Ted Turner’s one rule for journalism
Those who labored contained in the community Ted Turner constructed bear in mind him as a pacesetter who was unconventional however principled. Former NCS chief information govt Eason Jordan referred to as him “a visionary, a trailblazer, a rabble-rouser, a do-gooder.” Former NCS president Tom Johnson supplied a window into Turner’s editorial philosophy, reported Georgia Public Broadcasting. When Johnson as soon as requested Turner what his guidelines about information had been, Turner replied: “Tom, one rule: Be fair.” Pressed for extra, Turner merely mentioned: “That’s it.”
‘As if God had been on his facet’: Media icons react to Ted Turner’s dying
Across the media world, those that competed with Turner and admired him in equal measure struggled to discover phrases satisfactory to his legacy. Variety reported that fellow media mogul John Malone captured the sensation succinctly, saying of Turner’s extraordinary run of successes: “It was as if God were on his side.”
Ted Turner’s billion-dollar philanthropy legacy: How he impressed Bill Gates and Warren Buffett
Turner’s affect stretched nicely past tv. He redefined what it meant for a billionaire to give again, making his most dramatic gestures whereas nonetheless very a lot alive and energetic. According to NPR, his philanthropy helped encourage the Giving Pledge championed by Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, and Turner was amongst its earliest signatories. He donated $1 billion to the United Nations Foundation and co-founded the Nuclear Threat Initiative to cut back the chance of weapons of mass destruction across the world.
Ted Turner dead at 87: Survived by 5 kids and a media empire that modified the world
Turner had battled Lewy physique dementia since revealing his analysis in 2018, and in early 2025 was hospitalized with pneumonia earlier than recovering. He handed away following a short hospice keep. He is survived by his kids Laura, Teddy, Rhett, Jennie, and Beau, together with 14 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.