Former University of Wisconsin campus director who produces porn argues for retention of his teaching position

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — In a closely watched case protecting First Amendment rights to the U.S. Constitution, a former University of Wisconsin campus chancellor who was fired after making pornographic films with his wife prepared to argue Friday to keep his tenured teaching position despite facing termination for unethical conduct.

Joe Gow, who had served as chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse for nearly 17 years, hoped to persuade a University of Wisconsin Board of Education personnel committee to recommend that he keep his tenured position and return to teaching communications courses.

Gow has been on leave from his faculty since the university administration fired him as chancellor in 2023, shortly after the university administration became aware of the videos posted on pornographic websites.

A faculty committee at the University of Washington-La Crosse unanimously recommended in July that Gow should lose his job because he exploited his position to generate more interest and revenue from the videos. Lawyers for the university plan to argue Friday that he should lose his tenured teaching position because he damaged the university's reputation and compromised its mission.

Gow has proven that he is incapable of recognizing his own misjudgment, the university's lawyers argued in briefs ahead of the hearing.

“This alone poses a serious risk to the university should Gow remain in office. Moreover, the university's reputation has been damaged and the damage will no doubt be even greater if Gow returns to the classroom,” the lawyers said.

The Regents' Personnel Committee is scheduled to discuss the case behind closed doors after hearing testimony on Friday. Its recommendation, which is also secret, will then be discussed at a meeting of the full Board of Regents next week.

The case attracted national attention because a high-ranking university official made pornographic films and spoke publicly about them, which was offensive and raised questions about freedom of expression.

Gow argued that his videos and two e-books he and his wife Carmen published about their experiences with adult films were protected by the First Amendment.

“It is entirely inconsistent with the First Amendment and the University Council's commitment to the philosophy of free speech on a university campus to prohibit or even punish speech that is legal and does not seriously harm the mission of the university,” Gow's attorney, Mark Leitner, argued in a brief ahead of the hearing.

The university is pushing to fire Gow for unethical conduct, insubordination by refusing to cooperate with an investigation and violating computer policies. The UW-La Crosse employee handbook requires faculty to “exhibit conduct that supports the mission of the university.”

Gow has claimed that he and his wife produced the pornographic material in their spare time. He insists that neither the videos nor the books mention UW-La Crosse or his role at the university.

However, in 2018, Gow was criticized for inviting porn actress Nina Hartley to speak on campus. She received $5,000 from her tuition fees for the speech. The idea to bring her to campus came to him after he had filmed a porn video with her, the university said.

Gow and his wife's e-books were written under pseudonyms: “Monogamy with Benefits: How Porn Enriches Our Relationships” and “Married with Benefits: Our Real Adventures in the Adult Industry.” They are also the stars of a YouTube channel called “Sexy Healthy Cooking,” in which the couple cooks alongside porn actors.

Gow's desire to return to teaching is opposed by his department head, Linda Dickmeyer. She said that since Gow has not taught for 20 years, he will be assigned general education courses, but she is opposed to allowing him to return to teaching in any capacity.

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