Free Republic

Asked at the National Press Club's luncheon on Monday “what do you see as the future vision for CNN now that Fox is gaining in market share and popularity?”, CNN founder Ted Turner leaned into the microphone and, prompting laughter and applause, produced a loud sputtering sound as he blew air through his lips with his tongue sticking out slightly -- aka "blowing a raspberry" or issuing a "Bronx cheer." "... the right-wingers have every right to have a network of their own and they've got one.”

The 100-year tenure of the McMurtrey Family at a pioneer ranch in Cherry County ended June 26 with a public referee auction at Valentine. R.E. "Ted" Turner purchased the property by offering the highest bid. Turner bought the 26,332 deeded acres for nearly $10 million... The opening bid was $290 per acre. It was the largest ranch land auction ever held in Cherry County, according to Eric Scott, Cherry county attorney. The auction was ordered by the Cherry County District Court. Erba "Hub" McMurtrey built his ranch starting with Kinkaid homesteads with three McMurtrey Brothers in 1908. Ranch acreage increased...

Lawyers for media mogul Ted Turner persuaded a district judge to issue a restraining order blocking Gallatin County from paving a five-mile stretch of road that runs through Turner's sprawling Flying D Ranch south of here. Attorneys for Turner Enterprises Inc. obtained the order from District Judge John Brown. It bars the county from paving a segment of Spanish Creek Road. Commissioners said the county has been planning to pave the road for years. To save money, the county was planning to use millings - essentially ground-up rubble from other road projects - provided by the Montana Department of Transportation...

CNN founder Ted Turner, the largest private landowner in Nebraska and the United States and the nation's largest bison rancher, said Wednesday that he is about done buying new ranches. He said he would like to reach 2 million acres nationwide before he dies — about 40,000 acres more than he currently owns. "I'm almost done. I've got enough," said Turner... The 69-year-old billionaire, philanthropist and conservationist said he isn't interested in free-standing ranches anymore, only "reasonably priced" parcels adjacent to his current operations, which include five ranches in Nebraska near Gordon, Oshkosh and Mullen. The ranches cover 425,221 acres,...

Ted Turner's men didn't flinch... When the auction was over, they walked away with what they came for: 26,300 acres of prime ranch land, at a cost of nearly $10 million. "It hasn't taken long to find out he's serious," said Duane Kime, a rancher and Turner neighbor who was outbid by about $100,000 by the CNN founder. But what exactly is Turner serious about? The question gnaws at folks here and in other rural areas of the country ... Turner has amassed 2 million acres over the past two decades to become the largest private landowner in the country....