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Porn debate surprisingly shallow, unsubstantial Brandi Panter Managing Editor It all began with a question. As some unexpected delays kept the debate between Ron Jeremy, porn star, and Chris Gross, pastor and founder of the website www.xxxchurch.com, from starting, moderator Lynn Sacco, associate professor of history, walked around asking various young women the question: “Is porn demeaning to women?” to varying degrees of hesitant responses. “Why is this happening?” Sacco further inquired to a young woman standing in an aisle of the UC Ballroom. “Do you think that porn affects you negatively as a woman?” The debate, co-sponsored by the Issues Committee and the Women’s Coordinating Council, kicked off not soon after, with Gross and Jeremy appearing on the stage at either end behind a podium. Both men sported purple, with Gross in the form of a suit and Jeremy in the fashion of a purple Hawaiian print shirt, sweat pants and red Crocs. The debate didn’t begin without controversy, as Gross invited Jeremy to make his opening statement first. A shout of “Why, are you scared?” launched from the audience prompted Jeremy to defend his sparring partner, saying “I’m under the attack.” After some explanation of both sides of the debate, Gross began his introduction by explaining what piqued his interest in pornography outreach. “I started XXXchurch about eight years ago,” he said. “I was a youth pastor. I didn’t grow up around porn. We didn’t have cable, didn’t have Internet. “Then about 10 years ago, I was working with a bunch of teenagers after graduation,
you know, slow Internet, dial-up, who would say, ‘I waited 20 minutes for this picture to download, and I saw boobs and it was awesome.’” Gross said that he is not opposed to pornography but aims to offer aid for addiction. “You would go to AA if you have a problem with alcohol,” he said. “We aren’t trying to shut down the porn industry. We are just trying to offer people help who are addicted to porn. “We’re not there to boycott or to say ‘Don't look at porn.’ Instead we’re saying, ‘If you have a problem, we want to help.’” Gross’ website offers support, information to aid with addiction and even software to monitor a user’s history and to notify whoever the user chooses to hold them accountable for their slipups, among other features. Jeremy began his portion of the counterattack by informally polling the audience. “Show of hands, who here has watched porn with a significant other,” he asked, as a few scattered hands raised around the room. Jeremy’s argument centered on the idea that pornography can be helpful to couples, with his emphasis being placed on the benefits it can have for couples in terms of fantasies and erotica. “Big deal, it’s just sex,” Jeremy said, addressing the notion that pornography is somehow controversial. He added that the majority of the people in the room could probably tell him more than he knows about sexuality. See DEBATE on Page 2
Joy Hill • The Daily Beacon
Porn star Ron Jeremy defends the integrity of the pornographic industry during The Great Porn Debate on Tuesday, Sept. 28. Students turned out en masse to the event.
Virginia Poet Laureate visits UT Robbie Hargett Staff Writer
Claudia Emerson
Students and faculty arrived Monday in the Hodges Library’s Lindsey Young Auditorium for Claudia Emerson’s poetry, but they stayed for the raucous country duet between Emerson and her acoustic guitar-wielding husband, Kent Ippolito. “I first discovered Claudia Emerson’s work through ‘Pharaoh, Pharaoh,’ a 1997 work that I kept returning to, finding new levels, its language and narrative arcs both memorable and inventive,” Jeff Daniel Marion, the Jack E. Reese Writer in Residence at UT, said. Marion described Emerson, the Poet Laureate of Virginia, as a “voice that strikes deeply at the heart of things.” As part of UT’s Writers in the Library series, Emerson read works covering many subjects and themes, from loss and desolation to reflections on the image of flocking birds. Emerson described her inspiration for some of her poems. “People around me, if they say anything interesting, I just steal it and stick it in a poem somewhere,” she said. She recalled a comment she once made to her husband. “I said, ‘You sure own a lot of instruments,’ and Kent said, ‘No one really owns a musical instrument. They are just their guests,’” she said. “And I thought that was pretty good, so I wrote it down.” The poems she chose to read came from sections of several of her books, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning book of poet-
ry, “Late Wife,” the title of which refers to Ippolito’s deceased first wife. “That was the most personal of the books,” Emerson said. “I ended up at the known risk of doing this thing I call ‘writing close to the bone,’ when you write out of your personal life and try to turn it into art.” She also read poems addressed to her ex-husband, which she said were “wickedly more fun to write.” Emerson and Ippolito even wrote a song to supplement the reading of the poem of the same subject. The energetic number, a reflection of Emerson’s playfully vengeful thoughts upon seeing her ex-husband’s new girlfriend, was the highlight of the evening. “The song was fun,” Emerson said. “My memories of it involved a couple of friends and a bottle of wine.” Jordan Lewis, senior in economics, said he enjoyed the musical finale the most and would like to see more of Emerson’s songwriting abilities. “It’s a sad story, but it’s good that she can be honest about it and create something worthwhile out of it,” Lewis said. “She made it art.” Emerson said she didn’t think she had what it takes to make a record at her age, but she and Ippolito have written several songs. She further discussed her experience with songwriting and performing in the Q-and-A session after the reading and at the reception following the event. “To me, these portions of the program are as interesting as the readings themselves,” JoAnne Deeken, head of research and grants of the UT’s Libraries, said. “The conversations make the readers approachable people and not some remote figures seen from afar.” Deeken said this closeness is one of the main reasons students should attend the Writers in the Library readings. “The programs are an opportunity to interact with published authors — some well-known, some not yet well-known — in an intimate setting,” Deeken said. The reception, held in the Mary E. Greer room of the library, took this intimacy a step farther. Emerson spoke with students in a round-table discussion style, while signing books intermittently. She encouraged students to keep writing and to try new things. Deeken said that these kinds of lively, personal discussions with the author make creativity seem normal and attainable by all. “We all need to awaken our creativity in order to realize our full potential,” she said. “These presentations help all of us realize that we, too, can be creative.”
Banner system eases registration Alyce Howell Staff Writer Banner Self Services is the university’s new informational system that will replace CPO soon. It is a fully integrated system, which includes admissions, registration, academic records and transcripts, catalog and curricula, timetable, graduation, fee payment and financial aid. Students, staff and faculty will be able to access these functions through the new MyUTK portal. The main difference between CPO and Banner is that Banner is designed to have all the programs that students and faculty use readily at their fingertips. “Students will have many new features in the new system,” Monique Anderson, associate dean of the office of the registrar, said. “Students can access their e-mail, check their Vol Card balance, view holds, register and more.” The faculty and staff have been offered training in the use of the new system by the university. Overview sessions will begin soon to remind them how to work the system. The system is being prepared to take over in the fall semester, because of the time it takes to get a new system built and for it to be tested. “There have been some problems with Banner but nothing significant,” Anderson said. “Our OIT staff was great in fixing any problems that happened.” As a part of helping to test the new system, students were asked to be involved. On Sept. 23, 1,200 randomly selected students were offered the opportunity to register early. “In total, 304 students registered on that day and are enrolled in 884 unique sections offered by the university,” Anderson said. Devon Brahan, senior in mathematics, was one of the selected testers that were contacted by e-mail. Brahan said even though she did not get any compensation for being a tester, getting the chance to register for classes early was great, because there were plenty to choose from. “I did like Banner, especially the homepage,” Brahan said. “I did not have any problems, though it was a little tricky to use at first, because I have been used to the way CPO works.” After students participated in the testing of Banner, surveys were sent out to find out the students’ reactions to the new system. It was determined the students had a positive view of Banner. “I think it’s very user-friendly because of the portal and easy access to registration functions and information,” Anderson said. The Banner system will be fully operational January 2011. However, the usual rules for registration, such as students seeing an advisor beforehand, are still in place.