NY- One of the world’s most famous porn stars will visit Binghamton University this semester to debate the ethics and practices of the porn industry.

The Great Porn Debate, brought on campus by the Student Association’s Programming Board, is scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 16 from 7 to 10:30 p.m. at the Anderson Center. Tickets, which are $5 for students and $10 for the public, will be on sale the week of the event, as well as the night of at the door.

The program will feature porn star Ron Jeremy alongside author and recovering sex addict Michael Leahy.

According to Aaron Cohn, a sophomore accounting and leadership and consulting major who helped bring the event to campus, he and other members of the SA thought the debate would be a great follow-up to last year’s Great Pot Debate.

“It [the Great Porn Debate] is from the same production company,” Cohn, variety chair on the Programming Board, said. “We thought, ‘Yeah, it’s a no-brainer. How could we not bring it?’”

Vice President for Programming Aaron Butler echoed Cohn’s sentiments.

“We were looking to bring something similar to it [the pot debate] that would get a great draw and be educational and fun,” Butler, a senior management, marketing and leadership major, said.

The Great Porn Debate was developed by Wolfman Productions, a company that organizes speakers and programs.

Cohn said the SA had been working on scheduling the event since last semester, and that he was excited to bring Jeremy to campus.

“He’s a director, he knows the subject well and he’s very articulate about it,” Cohn said. “He knows the industry in and out.”

Hayley Rosenblum, a senior political science major and member retention chair on the SA programming board, said she was looking forward to seeing Jeremy.

“There’s something intriguing about him even being on campus,” Rosenblum said. “Especially on campus to speak and defend his position on his chosen lifestyle and career.”

Rosenblum said she thinks that hearing Jeremy’s experiences in the business helps validate his pro-pornography stance.

According to Cohn, another big draw of the event was bringing Leahy to argue the counterpoint.

“Michael Leahy is someone who people can really see the devastating effects of porn with,” Cohn said.

Cohn said he expected the debate to be balanced.

Leahy, who has been debating with Jeremy for about three and a half years, said he also thinks the debate is a good balance for students to see.

“The great thing about this event is that, other than having a moderator on the stage to kind of manage the flow of questions, all of the debate questions come from the students in the audience,” Leahy said. “That’s what I think is really cool about it.”

“I think people are really intrigued because Ron [Jeremy] represents the production side of the industry and I represent the consumer side,” Leahy added.

Leahy, who became involved with the event after promoting his book Porn Nation, said he was addicted to Internet porn and became a sex addict. According to Leahy, this cost him his marriage, job and business partnership with his brother.

Leahy said he recognized that his story was on the extreme end of the consumer side, but that he thought it was important for students to hear.

A representative from ronjeremy.com said Jeremy would only be available to comment during the debate.

According to Butler, the debate will be part of Campus Wars during the “hump” of homecoming week.

“It’s a real busy week for us and it should be a lot of fun,” Butler said.