Junichi P. Semitsu (Japanese: 瀬光淳一; Armenian: Ջունիչի Սեմիցու; Greek: Τζουνίτσι Σεμίτσου; Hebrew: יוניצי פ סמיצו) is a professor of law at the

University of San Diego The University of San Diego (USD) is a private Roman Catholic research university in San Diego, California. Chartered in July 1949 as the independent San Diego College for Women and San Diego University (comprising the College for Men and Schoo ...

and the exclusive blogger for

The Chicks The Chicks (previously known as Dixie Chicks) are an American country music band from Dallas, Texas. Since 1995, the band has consisted of Natalie Maines (lead vocals, guitar) and sisters Martie Maguire (vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) and E ...

. He co-created the pop culture and politics blog, Poplicks.com, with Oliver Wang. He also previously served as the Director of

June Jordan June Millicent Jordan (July 9, 1936 – June 14, 2002) was an American poet, essayist, teacher, and activist. In her writing she explored issues of gender, race, immigration, and representation. Jordan was passionate about using Black English i ...

's Poetry for the People at

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

. He also appeared as a contestant on ''

Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? ''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'' (often informally called ''Millionaire'') is an international television game show franchise of British origin, created by David Briggs, Mike Whitehill and Steven Knight. In its format, currently owned and ...

'' on January 11 and 14, 2008.

Biography

Junichi P. Semitsu was born in

Fresno Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. He grew up in

Hanford, California Hanford is a city and county seat of Kings County, California, located in the San Joaquin Valley region of the greater Central Valley (California), Central Valley. The population was 53,967 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. History ...

and attended Hanford High School. He received a B.A. in economics from the

University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant univ ...

and a J.D. from

Stanford Law School Stanford Law School (Stanford Law or SLS) is the law school of Stanford University, a private research university near Palo Alto, California. Established in 1893, it is regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world. Stanford La ...

. Semitsu studied creative writing under Professor

while a student at the

. In 2001, when Professor Jordan went on leave, she nominated Semitsu to direct the Poetry for the People program that she created and to serve as her successor. Semitsu directed the program from 2002 to 2005. In March 2006, he married poet Dima Hilal in

Laguna Beach Laguna Beach (; ''Laguna'', Spanish for "Lagoon") is a seaside resort city located in southern Orange County, California, in the United States. It is known for its mild year-round climate, scenic coves, environmental preservation efforts, and a ...

Blogger for the Dixie Chicks

Semitsu was hired by

MSN MSN (meaning Microsoft Network) is a web portal and related collection of Internet services and apps for Windows and mobile devices, provided by Microsoft and launched on August 24, 1995, alongside the release of Windows 95. The Microsoft Net ...

and the

Dixie Chicks The Chicks (previously known as Dixie Chicks) are an American country music band from Dallas, Texas. Since 1995, the band has consisted of Natalie Maines (lead vocals, guitar) and sisters Martie Maguire (vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) and E ...

in 2006 to join them on their Accidents & Accusations Tour, their promotional activities for ''

Taking the Long Way ''Taking the Long Way'' is the seventh studio album by American country music group Dixie Chicks. Released on May 23, 2006, through Columbia Nashville, it was also the group's last album released under the “Dixie Chicks” name. The album debut ...

'', awards show appearances, and for other appearances to write about the experience. Semitsu is effectively the first embedded blogger to follow a band for an extended period of time. One of Semitsu's more notable entries include how he helped

Emily Robison Emily Burns Strayer ( Erwin, previously Robison; born August 16, 1972) is an American songwriter, singer, multi-instrumentalist, and a founding member of the country band The Chicks, formerly known as the Dixie Chicks. Strayer plays banjo, dobro ...

write an apology to

Barbara Walters Barbara Jill Walters (born September 25, 1929) is an American broadcast journalist and television personality. Known for her interviewing ability and popularity with viewers, Walters appeared as a host of numerous television programs, including ...

, which was subsequently read on '' The View''. Of the experience, he wrote, "I am supposed to help world-famous rock star

write a letter to world-famous television personality Barbara Walters. Suddenly, I have become the ghostwriting mustard softening the beef in between a superstar white bread sandwich. This previous sentence is proof that I should not use any metaphors in the letter."

Honors

Semitsu received the

Marion Rice Kirkwood Moot Court Prize for best brief and best individual oral argument.Stanford Law School. (1 June 1999
Law School celebrates Commencement: 6/99
''Stanford News.'' Accessed 1 December 2007. While teaching in the African American Studies Department at U.C. Berkeley, he was selected as one of the Heroes among the

U.C. Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant univ ...

faculty.UC Berkeley News. (18 January 2006
Heroes among the UC Berkeley faculty
''UC Berkeley News.'' Accessed 1 December 2007. Semitsu was crowned the "Funniest Lawyer in San Diego" in March 2008 when he took first prize in the LAF-OFF (Lawyers Are Funny) stand-up comedy competition at the

House of Blues San Diego House of Blues is an American chain of live music concert halls and restaurants. It was founded by Isaac Tigrett, the co-founder of Hard Rock Cafe, and Dan Aykroyd, co-star of the 1980 film ''The Blues Brothers''. The first location opened at ...

References

External links

Personal WebsiteDixie Chicks MSN site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Semitsu, Junichi 1973 births Living people Stanford Law School alumni University of California, Berkeley alumni University of San Diego faculty American bloggers