U of Wisconsin Regents Schedule Hearing on Fate of Content Creator Professor

U of Wisconsin Regents Schedule Hearing on Fate of Content Creator Professor

LA CROSSE, Wis. — The Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents has scheduled a final hearing to weigh a faculty tribunal’s recommendation to strip veteran UW professor of communications Joe Gow of tenure for unremorsefully creating and appearing in adult content.

The hearing, which will be an open meeting of the Board of Regents personnel matters committee, is scheduled for Sept. 20 at UW-Madison’s Vilas Hall, the La Crosse Tribune reported. The paper noted that oral arguments will be offered by Gow or his lawyer, Mark Leitner, and by either Wade Harrison or Jennifer Lattis of the UW system’s legal counsel office. Harrison is senior legal counsel for the Universities of Wisconsin and previously laid out the case for removing Gow in front of a faculty senate committee. 

The personnel matters committee will then meet in closed session before making a recommendation for the full Board of Regents to consider at an upcoming meeting, possibly as soon as Sept. 26-27 at UW-Parkside.

As XBIZ reported, Gow was fired as chancellor on the recommendation of Universities of Wisconsin President Jay Rothman, who called the professor’s actions — including posting adult videos with his wife on their OnlyFans account — “abhorrent.”

Rothman told Gow in December that he had initiated a process to challenge his tenured faculty position in communication studies. The process resulted in a hearing during which Gow was required to defend himself before a faculty tribunal. After the hearing, the tribunal recommended that Gow be stripped of tenure.

At the tribunal, Gow delivered an opening statement in his own defense, asserting, “Tenure is based on the quality of one’s teaching, research and service. These bogus charges have nothing to do with that and they raise the question: do faculty have the right to engage in free speech in their personal lives, particularly on contemporary social media?”

The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) published a statement in July in support of Gow.

Academic authorities were originally egged on to take action against Gow by Rupert Murdoch-owned publications, as part of an ongoing, nationwide trend of Republican and conservative activists and operators waging stigmatizing smear campaigns targeting the livelihoods of individuals in diverse walks of life over their sex work, even when it is unrelated to their other occupations and activities.

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Ofcom Releases Transparency Reporting Guidelines

Ofcom, the U.K. media regulator, has made public its official guidance detailing how online service providers — including adult sites — will be required to publish annual transparency reports on their efforts to protect children from online harms.

New AV Rules Take Effect for Ireland-Based Platforms

Ireland’s Online Safety Code came into force Monday, including a provision requiring adult sites headquartered in Ireland to implement age assurance measures beyond self-declaration.

XBIZ Amsterdam Calls on New Startups for 'Spotlight' Program

XBIZ is pleased to announce that its new “Startup Spotlight” programming will make its European premiere at XBIZ Amsterdam 2025, set to take place Sept. 2-5 at the Jakarta Hotel Amsterdam.

Texas Resumes AV Lawsuit Against Aylo Following SCOTUS Decision

A district court judge in Texas has unfrozen the state’s $1.6 million lawsuit against Aylo for allegedly failing to comply with age verification requirements, Bloomberg Law is reporting.

JuicyAds Wins Trademark Infringement Case Against Fraudulent Domain

JuicyAds has won its World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) case against a website using a similar domain to impersonate the company's site and defraud customers.

Anissa Kate, Jordan Starr Top AEBN for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top-selling stars for the second quarter of 2025, with Anissa Kate landing atop the leaderboard for straight theaters and Jordan Starr heading up the gay rankings.

AEBN Reveals Eva Maxim as Top Trans Star for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top trans stars list for the second quarter of 2025, with Eva Maxim landing atop the leaderboard.

France Reinstates Age Verification Rule for EU Sites

France’s highest court, the Council of State, on Tuesday reinstated age verification rules for EU-based sites under the country’s Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law, ruling in favor of the French government and against Hammy Media.

Show More