The chancellor, his porn films, and the battle for America's soul

Simone Lueck for BI

As I'm eating roti in a booth with Joe Gow and his wife, Carmen Wilson, a man in a baseball cap approaches our table. As chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse for 17 years, Gow is as close to royalty as this Midwestern town gets. Six-foot-four and gray-haired, sporting an ever present gold chain, he was often approached by adoring students for selfies. But when I look into the man's eyes...