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Ted Turner’s Media Legacy and Inventing 24-hour News
Ted Turner died last week.
The media mogul is credited with creating the 24-hour news cycle with the launch of CNN in 1980.
Remembrances of Turner highlight just how widespread his impact was on the media landscape.
“Ted Turner was one of the most important figures in the history of media,” wrote Poynter. Here’s what Hollywood Reporter said: “There is no one in American history who has done more to change how the world gets its news, for better or for worse, than Ted Turner.”
With CNN, Turner created a new reality for broadcast news – global and always-on.
CNN’s live coverage was there for news events including when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded. But it was with coverage of the first Iraq war that, according to Fortune, “the entire foundation of news shifted.”
CNN was one of the few networks with reporters in the country, and had invested in satellite phone technology. That allowed it to report more outside of official government updates and continue coverage after communications went down.
It shortened the timeline for reaching audiences. Over time, it shortened how long audiences were willing to wait for a response from officials and organizations.
News to Me
Today, we take the constant news cycle for granted. On many platforms, timeliness is just one aspect of complex algorithms that personalize who sees what news and when.
The reality is, many people these days want to limit their news consumption, not increase it. Audiences want a break. We’ve helped clients develop campaigns to help audiences decompress from the steady onslaught of updates and developments.
Still, Turner’s CNN amplified something communications pros have always known. Coverage of an event can shape the actions policymakers and organizations take and the outcome of events.