EOTO 3 Ted Turner

 For my last EOTO, I chose to write about Ted Turner, the former owner of several Atlanta sports teams,  the co-founder of the Nuclear Threat Initiative, and the founder of CNN, TNT, and TBS. I chose Ted Turner because I thought he was an important media figure, that was relatively unknown by people in my generation. 

I had only heard of him this year, while I was playing the New Campaign Trail, a game where you run for President. There is a mod where you can run as him in 1996 against Newt Gingrich in an alternate timeline where Bush won the 1992 election. 

The mod presents a lot of his political beliefs and statements from throughout the years such as being an advocate of environmentalism, abortion, and World Peace. It also displays some of the controversial statements he has made about religion, his marriage to Jane Fonda, and his past mistakes such as cheating on his wife and dressing up as a Klansman in front of a Jewish fraternity. 

He seemed like a very complex and interesting person. I was happy to find out that I was not incorrect. Mr. Turner to put it lightly has had an enormous influence on the Media landscape. He was born in 1938 in Ohio. He went to college at Brown but got kicked out after getting caught sleeping with a girl in his dorm. He took over his father's billboard company after his father's suicide. He then branched out buying a local radio channel and then a local TV station in Atlanta. By 1976, he had the idea to found CNN and was worth $100 million.

 CNN is one of the largest News Networks in the country. It was the first station to adopt 24-hour coverage. Ted Turner was able to make CNN such a large company through the early adoption of satellite technology. This turned Television from local channels to channels that could be shown to people all over the country. 

 

CNN had groundbreaking shows such as Moneyline, a show about the stock market and economic data, Evans and Novak, a political commentary and interview show, Crossfire, a debate show with conservative Pat Buchanan and liberal Tom Braden. These shows paved a trail for what Cable News would often present. Ted Turner has recently commented that he thinks the network has become too opinionated but refuses to critique them any further.

CNN complex in Atlanta

Ted Turner was a big investor in Time Warner Cable. At one point in his life, he had an estimated fortune of 7 billion dollars. Much of this was lost due to the failure of the merger of Time Warner and AOL. Ted Turner using his influence within the company led to the creation of Cartoon Network. Cartoon Network produced one of my favorite TV shows, the regular show, a show about two irresponsible Park employees going on absurd adventures. 

A major part of Ted Turner was his environmentalism. He founded a television show called Captain Planet which encouraged young people to protect the environment. The show aired from 1990 to 1996. He also founded the Turner Foundation in 1990. This foundation seeks to protect the land, air, and water. Turner infamously defended China's one-child policy. 

There are some other interesting facts about Ted Turner. Turner is also the owner of a chain of restaurants known as Ted's Montana Grill. There are several locations all over the country. The closest location is in Durham, North Carolina. He is the largest landowner in the United States. He has ranches in several US states such as Montana and South Dakota. He hosted the Goodwill Games with Jesse Jackson to help boost relations between the United States and the rest of the world. The Games occurred every 4 years starting in 1986 but ended in 2001. 

Ted Turner in 1976

I enjoyed learning about Ted Turner. He was one of the most influential men in pioneering our current media landscape. He was an early adopter of satellite technology which helped modernize the television industry. I also liked learning about Ted Turner because he is a complex figure. He is an avid environmentalist and is vocally anti-war, but he is also a proud Southerner. He purchased "Gone with the Wind" which is one of the most famous films about the Civil War through the Southern perspective. I found this interesting because many see this film as portraying "The Lost Cause" narrative. Turner is a man who is not afraid to speak his mind but also seeks to be friends with everybody. These traits that I try to have and they are traits that I admire in people.