EXCLUSIVE: Ted Turner's Will Details — Radar Reveals Who Will Inherit 'Crazy' News Pioneer's $2.6Billion Fortune… And Why It WON'T Be His 5 Children
The late Ted Turner's massive $2.6B will has revealed why his children are being bypassed.
May 8 2026, Published 9:00 a.m. ET
Ted Turner's $2.6billion fortune is set to be steered toward environmental and philanthropic causes rather than simply divided among his five children, with the late CNN founder's long-held pledge to give away the bulk of his wealth now shaping the future of one of America's most remarkable media empires.
As RadarOnline.com was among the first to report, Robert Edward Turner III – better known as Ted Turner – has died aged 87 after a career that transformed television news, sports broadcasting and environmental philanthropy.
Ted Turner died at the age of eighty-seven after a prolific media career.
The outspoken entrepreneur, who created CNN in 1980 and later built a vast land empire across the western United States, had publicly vowed for years most of his estate would ultimately be directed toward charitable initiatives.
Turner, estimated to be worth $2.6billion at the time of his death, had already donated $1billion to the United Nations during his lifetime and repeatedly said he intended to leave much of his remaining wealth to causes tied to conservation, wildlife and clean energy.
He is survived by his five children – Laura, Teddy, Rhett, Beau and Jennie Turner – along with 14 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Billionaire's Children Knew Fortune Wasn't Theirs
Turner donated one billion dollars to the United Nations during his lifetime.
A source close to the Turner family said the billionaire had long made clear his children understood the inheritance would not simply be handed down in the traditional fashion.
The insider told us: "Ted always believed the money had a bigger purpose. His children were raised knowing that conservation and philanthropy mattered more to him than dynastic wealth."
Another source added: "He wanted his legacy to outlive cable television or baseball teams. The fortune was always going to support the environmental causes he spent decades building."
Turner spent much of his later life at his 113,000-acre Montana ranch after revealing in 2018 he had Lewy body dementia, a degenerative neurological disease.
Over the years he became one of the largest private landowners in the United States, controlling more than 1.9 million acres across six states and maintaining a herd of around 50,000 bison.
CNN Founder Built Media Empire After Family Tragedy
Turner expanded his business empire into sports ownership with the Atlanta Braves.
Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1938, Turner endured a turbulent childhood dominated by his father's alcoholism and violent discipline.
After briefly attending Brown University, he joined the family billboard business before taking control at 24 when his abusive, alcoholic father died by suicide in 1963.
Turner transformed a struggling Atlanta television station into the first national "superstation" before launching CNN, the world's first 24-hour television news network.
Though mocked in its early years as the "Chicken Noodle Network," the channel became indispensable during the Gulf War in 1990 when it broadcast live coverage from Baghdad.
Turner's business success later expanded into sports ownership with the Atlanta Braves and Atlanta Hawks, while his colorful behavior earned him nicknames including "Captain Outrageous" and "The Mouth of the South."
Jane Fonda Called Turner A 'Miracle'
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Jane Fonda married the outspoken media mogul in a ten-year union.
Turner's personal life was equally high-profile.
His 10-year marriage to actor and activist Jane Fonda ended in 2001, though the pair remained close afterward.
Fonda once said: "Given his childhood, he should've become a dictator. He should've become a not nice person. The miracle is that he became what he is – a man who will go to heaven. He's a miracle."
In 2012, Turner reflected on the personal and financial setbacks which marked his later years.
He said: "I lost Jane. I lost my job here. I lost my fortune, most of it. Got a billion or two left. You can get by on that if you economize."
Also known as 'Terrible Ted,' Turner once said about his ego: "If I only had a little humility, I'd be perfect.
"I'm trying to set the all-time record for achievement by one person in one lifetime. And that puts you in pretty big company – Alexander the Great, Napoleon, Gandhi, Christ, Mohammed, Buddha, Washington, Roosevelt, Churchill."
