The University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents unanimously fired UW-La Crosse Chancellor, Joe Gow during a closed-door meeting Wednesday after discovering videos posted on porn websites featuring him and his wife.
Gow, 63, and his wife, Carmen Wilson, are featured on several porn websites using “Sexy Happy Couple” as the account name, a moniker also used on at least two social media accounts.
The couple also published two books detailing their experiences in the adult film industry, under pseudonyms. Both books and the social media accounts feature photos clearly showing Gow and Wilson.
“In recent days, we learned of specific conduct by Dr. Gow that has subjected the university to significant reputational harm,” UW System President Jay Rothman said. “His actions were abhorrent.”
UW Board of Regents President Karen Walsh said Gow showed “a reckless disregard” for his role as a UW-La Crosse leader.
“We are alarmed, and disgusted, by his actions, which were wholly and undeniably inconsistent with his role as chancellor,” she said.
Gow told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, part of the USA TODAY Network, that the creation of books and videos exploring consensual adult sexuality falls within his right to free speech under the First Amendment. He said he previously hid this part of his life but made a recent decision to reverse course and “be a little bit more open about these free speech issues.”
“There’s nothing said about the University of Wisconsin; there’s nothing said about the chancellor (on the videos),” he said after the firing Wednesday. “So someone else would have to make those associations. And then someone would have to say those are problematic.”
No university property or funds were used to create the books or videos, Gow said. He created the content on his own personal time and spent more on production costs than the “minimal” money the videos have earned through the websites.
Gow questioned whether the board afforded him due process because he said he wasn’t given an opportunity to make his case. He said no one at the UW System nor on the UW Board of Regents contacted him ahead of the Wednesday meeting where the board met behind closed doors for just over three hours. University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents unanimously fired UW-La Crosse Chancellor Joe Gow during a closed-door meeting Wednesday after discovering videos posted on porn websites featuring him and his wife.
Gow, 63, and his wife, Carmen Wilson, are featured on several porn websites using “Sexy Happy Couple” as the account name, a moniker also used on at least two social media accounts. USA Today
