Ted Turner

In his nearly three-and-a-half-hour interview, Ted Turner talks about his start in the billboard industry and how that led him into the broadcasting industry. He describes purchasing his first independent TV station in Atlanta, leasing space on RCA's communication satellite, SATCOM II, and launching the world's first superstation (later known as TBS). He discusses the birth of the world's first 24-hour television news station, CNN, and the subsequent launch of CNN Headline News, and CNN Español. Turner also outlines purchasing Hanna-Barbera's library and the creation of the Cartoon Network. He talks of launching networks TNT and Turner Classic Movies (TCM), and shares how he acquired MGM and embarked upon the colorization of black and white movies. He speaks about his merger with Time Warner, and his baseball team, the Atlanta Braves, winning the 1995 World Series. He concludes by addressing the responsibility and power of the media and the dangers of media consolidation, and talks of his vision for the future of television. Michael Rosen conducted part one of the interview on June 12, 1999 in Santa Monica, CA, and part two of the interview on December 6, 1999 in Atlanta, GA.