Trump Says Ted Turner Was 'Devastated' by 'Woke' CNN
President released a statement in honor of on Wednesday, where he argued that the media mogul was “personally devastated” that he sold CNN and the company “became woke,” also sharing his hopes that the Ellisons “will be able to bring it back to its former credibility and glory.”
Turner, who founded CNN and Turner Networks, died Wednesday at 87.
“Ted Turner, one of the Greats of All Time, just died. He founded CNN, sold it, and was personally devastated by the Deal because the new ownership took CNN, his ‘baby,’ and destroyed it,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “It became woke, and everything that he is not all about.”
Trump did not explicitly name the Ellisons — neither Larry or Paramount CEO David — in his post, but he did reference Paramount‘s $110 billion megadeal to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery; the latter media company owns CNN. He wrote, “Maybe the new buyers, wonderful people, will be able to bring it back to its former credibility and glory. Regardless, however, one of the Greats of Broadcast History, and a friend of mine. Whenever I needed him, he was there, always willing to fight for a good cause! President DONALD J. TRUMP.”
The CNN founder was an avid environmentalist, creating the Turner Foundation in 1990, which was created “to protect and restore the natural systems — air, land and water — on which all life depends,” its mission statement reads.
Turner did not just found CNN, but had a great impact on the wider news landscape. He launched CNN in 1980 and had a significant impact on the foundation of the cable business through satellite transmission of his WTBS “superstation.” He also founded TNT, TCM and Cartoon Network; he sold his media empire to Time Warner in 1995 for $6.5 billion.
Turner was honored by a number of fellow media juggernauts on Wednesday, including David Zaslav, Rupert Murdoch, Mark Lazarus and Brian Roberts.
“Ted was a visionary, a trailblazer and a foundational force behind many of the brands that are central to Warner Bros. Discovery today. Ted’s entrepreneurial spirit, creative ambition and willingness to take risks changed the media industry forever,” Zaslav, president and CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, wrote in a memo to WBD staff Wednesday. “He believed deeply in the power of ideas, in doing things differently and in building platforms that could inform, inspire and connect people around the world. That belief inspired generations of leaders, myself included. He did not just disrupt media. He transformed it.”
