Ted Turner turns 75
In an all out media Birthday bash, CNN has a full blown tribute to its creator Ted Turner who turns 75 on Tuesday.
This is probably the most effort they've put into a real story in years. I have personally heard Mr. Turner say that he isn't thrilled with what CNN has become and what the 24/7 model has done to our society but it is what it is. And, I do have some first hand knowledge about some of this story and I must say that they still get it wrong with regard to bison and his role in their current fate. This leads me to suspect that they can't get it right no matter how much info is at their fingertips. But I like Ted, in person he's an amazingly intelligent man with altruistic intentions and a good speaker as long as there's not a camera in his face and nobody asking stupid questions. He's a major supporter of wildlife and women's reproductive rights... he gives millions toward those efforts every year... and he tells his grandchildren to turn off the lights when not in use and to recycle. For a really wealthy guy, he is really down-to-earth and a much better person than most of the other wealthy folks I know or know of, not one to treat you like a lesser being when he talks to you.
So, CNN does a huge piece of coverage on a topic they have a lot of background on (I question their choice of title)...
(CNN) -- What will matter most about Ted Turner's life story when they roll the final credits?
That he started the first 24-hour news network? Built a fortune once worth $10 billion? Was Time magazine's "Man of the Year"? Received a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame? Made The New York Times best-seller list?
Maybe it was that time he raced a sailboat faster than anyone else. Or the year his baseball team won the World Series. Impressed yet? Did you know he had a president for a fishing buddy and won the heart of a movie star?
Turner turns 75 on November 19 and yes, he has done or been all of these things. There's also his "Captain Outrageous" side. He kept a pet alligator, compared rival Rupert Murdoch to Hitler and called Christianity "a religion for losers.
But there's more to Turner than the swashbuckling sportsman, Forbes list billionaire (No. 260, $2.1 billion) or infamous "Mouth of the South." After he rose to great heights, he fell to earth with a humbling thud and his better self emerged as a humanitarian and large-scale philanthropist hell-bent on setting a good example for other billionaires. As Turner sees it, what's the point of making billions if you can't give most of it away?
http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/17/us/ted-turner-profile/index.html?hpt=hp_c3
= new reply since forum marked as read
[font color="navy" face="Verdana"]Thanks for sharing your experience and insights. 
I know he gets a bad rap in the media but I suspect it is because he doesn't play their game very well. He's outspoken and says what he feels/means whether it's PC or not. Once I figured that out about him, and what he does with all that cash, I have a lot of respect and admiration for him.
I'd love to work in one of his organizations, they treat their employees well.