A true visionary is gone. Ted Turner, the revolutionary owner of the Atlanta Braves and founder of CNN, has died at 87.
Turner's impact on sports and media cannot be overstated. This wasn't just a rich guy who bought a team - this was a man who fundamentally changed how America watched sports.
Before Turner, local teams were local. You watched your home team on local TV, and that was it. Turner saw something different. He owned TBS, and he started broadcasting Braves games nationally. Suddenly, people in California could watch Atlanta play baseball every night.
That simple idea - putting sports on cable television nationwide - revolutionized the industry. It created the concept of "America's Team" in baseball. It showed other owners that sports broadcasting could be a massive business. It paved the way for ESPN, regional sports networks, and everything that came after.
As CNN reports, Turner was also famously hands-on with the Braves. He managed the team for one game in 1977 - a stunt that got him suspended but showed his competitive spirit.
He was brash. He was bold. He took risks that other people thought were insane. And he was usually right.
Turner didn't just own a baseball team - he turned that team into a national brand. The tomahawk chop. The pitching dominance of the 1990s. The runs to the World Series. He built something special in Atlanta.
But his legacy extends far beyond baseball. Creating CNN changed journalism. Creating TBS changed entertainment. Creating the Goodwill Games challenged the Olympics. Turner was always pushing boundaries, always looking for the next big idea.
