Ted Turner, the brash sportsman and entrepreneur whose ambition and instincts led to a media empire that included the groundbreaking news network CNN, has died, CNN reports, citing a press release from Turner Enterprises. He was 87.No cause of his death on Wednesday was given.In September 2018, Turner revealed that he had Lewy body dementia, a degenerative nerve disease.He became a billionaire by taking over his father’s billboard business, buying a television station in the 1970s and parlaying that into what would become a vast, groundbreaking television group.“Ted was an intensely involved and committed leader, intrepid and fearless and always willing to back a hunch and trust his own judgement. He was and always will be the presiding spirit of CNN,” CNN Worldwide CEO Mark Thompson said in a statement. “Ted is the giant on whose shoulders we stand, and we will all take a moment today to recognise him and his impact on our lives and the world.”Turner became one of the most powerful figures in US media and entertainment, his networks specialising in news, sports, reruns and old movies. But he did not stop there. He added the MGM/UA movie studio to his portfolio before making an even bigger move – merging his Turner Broadcasting System …
