Michael Hemmingson
Michael Hemmingson has covered local homicides, bands, art, culture, and social issues for the Reader. He also publishes novels, short story collections, literary criticism, and edited anthologies, such as Expelled from Eden: A William T. Vollmann Reader
Hemmingson is also an ethnographer, publishing both empirical and theoretical work in qualitative inquiry under the aegis of sociology, communications, and anthropology, with forthcoming books iBLOGGER: Symbolic Interaction, Digital Ethnography, and the Electronic Double in the Blogosphere and Auto/Ethnographies: Sex, Death and Independent Filmmaking in the Eighth Moment of Qualitative Inquiry. He is currently finishing two ethnographic studies of Tijuana, Zona Norte and Shadow Lives, and a social issues study of homelessness, Now I Know What Happened to Me.
His first feature film, The Watermelon, was released in fall 2008.
Latest Blog Entries
Catch Me if You Can -- Smash and Flee in Midday El Cajon
Monday, Sept. 19, 2011
On 9/18/11 at about 11:38 pm, the driver ...
What David Antin Talks About at D.G. Wills Bookstore When He Talks About Andy Warhol
Sunday, May 15, 2011
 Last Friday evening (7:00 PM, May 13, ...
Abandoned by Families: Tijuana Strays Search and Beg for Food
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Since last March, the number of stray dogs ...
Street Boxing in Tijuana
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Boxing is a very popular sport in the ...
The Tsunami That Never Came
Thursday, May 12, 2011
It's been two months since the Japan quakes ...
New Novel - Hard Cold Whisper
Thursday, May 12, 2011
My new [crime novel][1], *HARD COLD WHISPER*, comes ...
Craigslist Leads to Murder in Paradise
Thursday, May 12, 2011
SDPD Homicide Det. Kevin Rooney tells the press ...
Bad Cops Get Caught -- But Not All of Them Do
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Yesterday, San Diego Police Chief William Lansdowne was ...
Man Tosses Ex-Lover Over the Balcony
Friday, April 18, 2008
3100 Via Tonga, Otay Mesa April 11, 7:00 ...
Case of the South Bay Body
Thursday, April 17, 2008
I-5 and SR-54 exchange, National City April 16, ...
Teen Dies in the Mean Streets of Escondido
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Mission and Maywood, Escondido April 10, 11:02 p.m. ...
Death by Crutch, Downtown-Style
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
800 F Street, Downtown April 13, 11:50 p.m. ...
San Diego Ad Writer Helps Locate Wanted Murderers
Monday, April 14, 2008
James Spring, an advertising writer and freelance radio ...
Mystery of "John Doe" Bones Needs to Be Pieced Together
Sunday, April 13, 2008
While the suitcase of human bones found by ...
Man Found Guilty for Meth Mania Debt Collecting Slaying
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
San Diego Superior Court April 3, 2008 On ...
Killer Admits to Second Degree Murder
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
San Diego Superior Court April 3, 2008 31-year-old ...
More Blog Entries
Latest Stories
Friend of Shamu
Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2009
When Chris Cantore signed off from his shift at 91X on December 14, 2007, he told listeners that he was unsure if he would be returning to the job after ...
The Gothic M.O.
Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009
Call Me Alice is in the final stages of completing their new CD How Motivation Killed the Man, scheduled for release this fall. At least, that seems to be the ...
Wages of Art
Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2009
Zack Wentz, primarily a drummer and vocalist, is somewhat of a minimalist with regard to band lineups — Kill Me Tomorrow is a three-man act, and the offshoot, Tender Buttons, ...
Bert's Fan
Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2009
If given a chance for an alternate profession, Brenda Xu would work for Sesame Street, “writing skits for Bert and Ernie. Bert’s such a great ‘square’ character. I love his ...
Klezmer Gypsy Punk
Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2009
Di Nigunim is a 13-member band, making it difficult to perform on small stages and a challenge to coordinate rehearsals and gigs. The band’s instruments include the cimbalom, accordion, piano, ...
Big Hair, Big Party
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Lipstick N Leather is a hard-working hair band that covers the oldies of the late ’70s/early ’80s, when glam rock was, you know, cool. Lipstick N Leather has gigs every ...
Instant Groove
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Incomplete Neighbor’s debut album, Suspended Electric Coma, hit the streets May 9 featuring ten original pieces of art on the cover and inside the CD sleeve. Each band member painted ...
Hey, Hoochie Mamas
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
In March of this year, Revolt in Style called the Buzzbombs “San Diego’s Favorite Party Band.” The rockabilly trio is all about having a good time. “Our crowds are always ...
Not the Loudest
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
In junior high, Kelly Dalton started writing songs and playing in bands and then began gigging, touring, and recording in his teens and 20s. “In the late ’90s I was ...
Less Agro
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Solo musician Derek Papa is a nostalgic fellow. “I would like to see those stage guitar holders come back,” he says, “the ones that don’t require a strap, they just ...
