Jockey Club fires media executive Adelson

Ken Adelson, a former NBA television executive hired by The Jockey Club in early 2012, has been fired by the organization one year after The Jockey Club underwrote a series of televised races on the new Fox Sports network, according to several officials with knowledge of the decision.

Adelson, who had the title of executive producer for television and media for The Jockey Club’s Media Ventures subsidiary, was let go several weeks after the Sept. 14 conclusion of this year’s “Jockey Club Tour on Fox” series, which featured 10 live racing broadcasts. Adelson was the supervising producer of the series.

The Jockey Club launched the series in partnership with Fox this year as part of a five-year, $10 million effort by the organization to promote racing. Though no plans have been announced for a 2015 series, The Jockey Club is expected to continue to underwrite the series for at least one more year.

Bob Curran, a spokesman for The Jockey Club, would not comment on the reason for Adelson being let go. Curran did say that Adelson’s departure will not affect The Jockey Club’s future plans for the Fox broadcast series.