NAMES IN THE NEWS : Turner Says News Woke Him Up

Ted Turner credits his Cable News Network with awakening him to world problems.

“Until then, I was more interested in myself and my family,” Turner told students at the McCallie School, which he attended from 1951 to 1956.

After starting his 24-hour TV news station about 10 years ago, Turner told the students, he figured he’d better keep up more with the world’s activities.

“And I came to the conclusion after studying it on my own that we had made a terrible mistake getting involved in the arms race.”

Of even greater concern, Turner said, are world overpopulation and threats to the environment from business and industry. “I now look on development as bad,” he said. “When I see a new building going up, it makes me feel bad.”