From Billboards to Broadcast — and Back Again:
Reflections and Remembering Ted Turner
By Barry Frey, President, CEO, DPAA Global
www.dpaaglobal.com
Reflecting on Ted Turner’s passing last week, one cannot help but be moved by the extraordinary impact he had on media, our industry, and people around the world. In moments like this, I find myself drawn back to the formative years of my early career at Turner Broadcasting—years that profoundly shaped who I became, both professionally and personally.
I have been fortunate to build my career on the shoulders of giants. Along the way, I learned from extraordinary people and extraordinary organizations—fearless, relentlessly innovative places that sharpened my instincts, challenged my thinking, and shaped my understanding of leadership, business, and life itself. They brought success, yes—but more importantly, they brought fulfillment.
Such a giant was Ted Turner. From him and the remarkable company he built, I learned the purest principles of leadership, vision, marketing, and salesmanship. I learned how to take calculated risks. How to create instead of imitate. How to innovate without hesitation. How to recognize a great need—or a great idea—and will it into existence, transforming it from concept into movement, brand, and business.
We learned how to market brands, products, and services in ways that had never been attempted before. We learned how to identify the true decision-makers—and, more importantly, how to inspire action.
I remember riding the New York City subway with Ted, often just the two of us, talking baseball with Mets and Braves fans on our way to sales calls. I remember the celebrations—the hooting and hollering in taxicabs after landing a major pitch. And I remember the sheer audacity of our efforts during the 1986 Goodwill Games in Moscow, where our energy, enthusiasm, and irreverence stood in sharp contrast to the rigid Soviet system surrounding us.
There were agency walk-arounds. Power lunches at the New York Yacht Club with Ted, then America’s Cup champion. Big wins. Bigger risks. Pickup basketball games with teammates. Endless competition on every front.
And Ted was not the only giant I had the privilege to learn from.
I witnessed David Stern transform the National Basketball Association into a global force few could have imagined. I watched Kay Koplovitz shatter glass ceilings and redefine what leadership in television could look like. I observed as radio pioneer Norman Wain built an empire from humble beginnings with a ham radio operation. And I often think of my dear friend and broadcaster Ernie Anastos, whose optimism, energy, and passion for life never dimmed—even in his final days.
Ted also had a tremendous heart. He was a genuinely good human being and an incredibly inspiring one. His $1 billion commitment to the United Nations was groundbreaking at the time and helped set a new standard for philanthropy and “paying it forward” among billionaires.
There is also something deeply personal and poetic in the arc of Ted’s story and my own. Ted began in out-of-home advertising and went on to transform television. I began my career in television and now have the privilege of helping lead, alongside an exceptional team and outstanding industry colleagues, the transformation of what was once the billboard business into the dynamic world of digital out-of-home advertising.
Turner Broadcasting was consistently regarded as one of the most successful organizations in media. Year after year, The Myers Report ranked Turner’s sales organization among the best in the business. So, when I was named Turner Salesperson of the Year, it felt surreal—less like an award and more like a deeply personal milestone.
But the real reward was never the recognition.
It was the experience.
The lessons.
The pressure.
The victories.
The failures.
The laughter.
The unforgettable stories—some suitable for retelling, others best left to history.
We ran hard. We ran fast. We ran smart. And no matter how quickly the rest of us moved, Ted was always somehow farther out front—seeing around corners the rest of us didn’t yet know existed.
That is leadership!
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