Turner: Losing CNN "big mistake"

In a speech at the University of Georgia on Tuesday night, CNN founder Ted Turner said that losing control of CNN during the merger between AOL and Time Warner was a "huge mistake."

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution quotes Turner as saying: "I had no idea I would lose control of CNN when I merged with Time Warner... It was a big mistake to lose control of CNN. I lost control over it, and I lost it a long time ago. And I apologise to everybody. I had a sacred trust there, and I let it get away. I was over-confident. I thought I had done such a good job there was no way they could phase me out."

Turner also took the opportunity to criticise elements of tabloid reporting that have crept into the output of CNN's American channel, which during primetime has largely abandoned the once-famed ethos of "the news is the star" in favour of hour-after-hour of "star" personalities presenting programmes.

"CNN here in the United States has gotten a lot more tabloid," he observed, citing that as the reason that he decided not to seek re-election to the Time Warner board.

"We don't need that on CNN or Headline News," he explained. "That's one of the main reasons I'm not standing for re-election to the Time Warner board. I just can't take it anymore. I would have a broken heart. And I refuse to let that happen."

He added that CNN International still focuses on international affairs and other important issues "to a large degree."