GATHERING NEWS MAKES NEWS 

TURNER WORLD NEWS CENTER, ATLANTA -- IN MANY WAYS NETWORK TELE- VISION NEWS IS SHOW BUSINESS. IF IT ISN'T ENTERTAINING, TRADITION SAYS IT WON'T GET THE RATINGS. BUT THERE IS ONE UPSTART: THE ALL- NEWS NETWORK IS TEACHING OLD-LINE TELEVISION HOW IT'S DONE IN THE NEW AGE. AND IT'S TEACHING THEM WITH CLASS. THAT'S TED TURNER'S CNN (CABLE NEWS NETWORK) AND HEADLINE NEWS NETWORK, NOW BEAMING BOTH TO AND FROM THE WORLD OUTSIDE.

IT WASN'T ALWAYS THUS. TEN YEARS AGO WHAT IS NOW TURNER'S WTBS SUPERSTATION WAS A FAILING UHF TV OUTLET FACING A DISMAL FUTURE. ONCE TURNER ACQUIRED THIS UNKNOWN STATION HE PUT IT ON SATELLITE, REST IS HISTORY. NOW AS A PROFIT BASE, IT HAS ALLOWED THIS HANDSOME, BRASH AND RELATIVE NEWCOMER TO THE NEWS GAME TO SET THE RULES BY WHICH ALL OTHERS HAVE TO PLAY. THESE ARE THE SAME SO-CALLED 'SEASONED BROADCASTERS' WHO SAID HE COULD NEVER MAKE THE BIG TIME. ACCORDING TO LEGEND, HE WAS JUST A PLAYBOY SAILOR.

EVEN THE BUILDING HOUSING THE NEW US$92 MILLION CNN WORLD NEWS CENTER WAS ATLANTA'S BIGGEST WHITE ELEPHANT UNTIL TURNER STEPPED IN AND MADE IT SWING. NOW THE THRIVING BUSINESS/ENTERTAINMENT CENTRE HOUSES HIS OTHER NETWORKS, CNN RADIO AND CNN INTERNATIONAL. HE RECENTLY SOLD THE BUILDING AT A HANDSOME PROFIT, BUT REMAINS ITS LARGEST TENANT.

HOW LARGE? CONSIDER THE NEWS ROOM WITH 1,000 TV MONITORS. PLUS 500 COMPUTERS AND PRINTERS. PLUS MORE OF EVERYTHING -- 1,400 EMPLOYEES -- THAN ANY OTHER STUDIO IMAGINABLE. HIS OWN TELEPORT WITH THREE MILES OF FIBRE OPTIC CABLES LINKS THE CENTRE TO 15 SATELLITE RECEIVING AND TRANSMITTING ANTENNAES. TIED TO ALL THAT, 600,000 FEET OF COAXIAL WIRES AND 90 MILES OF TELEPHONE AND COMPUTER CABLE ALLOWS CNN TO "SEND THE NEWS AROUND THE WORLD AROUND THE CLOCK". A WORLD FIRST.

A TRIP THROUGH THIS INFORMATION AGE FACILITY, NOW OPEN TO THE PUBLIC, PROVIDES PERSPECTIVE ON THE ENTIRE OPERATING NEWSROOM VIA OVERHEAD WALKWAYS. YOU REACH THAT LOFTY POSITION BY TAKING ONE OF THE WORLD'S LONGEST FREE-SPAN ESCALATORS. SINCE TURNER ACQUIRED THE ENTIRE MGM FILM LIBRARY OF 1,651 MAJOR FILMS IN 1985, HE HAS BEEN PLAYING "GONE WITH THE WIND", AN ATLANTA STORY, TWICE A DAY, ALONG WITH MORE RECENT HITS IN THE CENTRE'S OWN CNN CINEMA 6. HE PURCHASED 700 OTHER FILMS FROM RKO IN 1987 AND ALL 800 WARNER BROS. FLICKS PRODUCED PRIOR TO 1950. IN ALL, HE HAS 6,700 FEATURES THAT WILL KEEP MOVIE AFICIONADOS WATCHING WELL INTO THE NEXT CENTURY AND BEYOND. THEY LAUGHED AT HIM WHEN HE DID THIS TOO. NOW THEY PAY HIM TO WATCH THOSE FILMS.

MEANWHILE, AROUND THE WORLD, CNN'S 195 CAMERAMEN (LIKE AWARD- WINNING DAL NEITZEL OF BELLINGHAM, WASHINGTON WHO COVERS THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST FOR CNN, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY REPORTS) PLUS 97 REPORTERS AND 63 ANCHOR PEOPLE BEAM THEIR STORIES UP 22, 300 MILES TO SATELLITES AROUND THE GLOBE. THIS PERMITS ALMOST INSTANT REPORTS FROM SUCH DISTANT AND DIVERSE LOCATIONS AS TIBET, TANGIER AND TUKTOYAKTUK. MORE INFORMATION: SHELLY CHARLES, PR DEPARTMENT, TURNER BROADCASTING SYSTEM, INC., ONE CNN CENTER, BOX 105366, ATLANTA, GA 30348-5366.

TEL 404/827-1529.

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