Broadcasting pioneer Ted Turner, who used his wealth to become one of Nebraska’s largest landowners, has died at 87.
Turner turned Atlanta station TBS into a cable success and went on to found CNN, creating the 24-hour news cycle.
In 2023, Flatwater Free Press reported “The media mogul’s back-to-back Nebraska land purchases in the late 1990s made him the single largest landowner in the state while sparking speculation and concern.”
Flatwater Free Press investigative reporter Destiny Herbers said, “Based on what he said publicly and what he was doing in these transactions… we sort of divined that he was likely going to give most or all of his land into that sort of research arm.”
That possibility has raised concerns in rural Nebraska, where property taxes help fund schools and local services.
Herbers spoke to the Rural Radio Network about her team’s reporting at the Flatwater Free Press. They found that Turner pledged those lands would stay on the tax rolls, however with is passing, what happens next remains uncertain.
Listings on Turner’s website show his land holdings include five Nebraska ranches totaling more than 440,000 acres. Herbers said Turner was unusually transparent, as reporters found it relatively straightforward to track his landholdings.
One of his ranches alone boasts 25 lakes and 55 miles of stream. Several of Turner’s Nebraska ranches have grazing bison herds while his website also lists conservation practices in use to protect other wildlife including pronghorn, pheasants, prairie chickens, turtles, and waterfowl.