NASCAR executive, PR expert

Hunter was involved with stock car racing for almost 50 years. But perhaps never as critically as when he became NASCAR vice president of corporate communications in 2001 when the sanctioning body was reeling from the death of Dale Earnhardt at that year’s DAYTONA 500. Hunter mostly worked behind the scenes in a career that started as public relations director at Darlington Raceway but also included stops as a sportswriter at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, PR director at Talladega and president of Darlington. He helped guide the careers of many drivers and steer NASCAR through controversies. "If it wasn't for Jim Hunter, there is a good possibility I might not have ever made it through my first two years in NASCAR," 2014 Cup champion Kevin Harvick posted on Twitter following his death. "Jim Hunter was one of NASCAR's giants," NASCAR chairman Brian France told ESPN. Said inductee Humpy Wheeler, " There is no doubt that he stands as one of the best PR practitioners not only in racing but in sport.”