‘I relish when my foes despise me’: the way Hasan Piker became a leading the most prominent voices on the American left

Hasan Piker dubs it a simple litmus test: “You get on a bus and you have 30 seconds to explain whatever online drama occurred to the bus driver without them turning to you and going, ‘Leave the damn bus.’” The vast majority of online debate, no matter how fiery, fails the test, he argues – including a strange event recently, when a person on a Dublin street requested to take a picture with Piker, then held up a picture of his dog and yelled “Free Kaya!” Forget the bus driver; attempting to explain the significance of that specific event could easily take the remainder of this article.

Existing in the In-Between Zone

Piker operates in this gray area increasingly these days. Until fairly recently, the 34-year-old was known only to the very online, particularly Americans in their 20s and 30s, largely thanks to his presence on the streaming platform Twitch. But since a recent presidential election, Piker has transformed into an sought-after voice in “traditional media” for his perspectives on the beleaguered political left, and specifically that constantly fretted-over demographic, young men.

A Favorite Target for the Right

Predictably, this also makes Piker a prime target of the political right. To his detractors there is a lot to criticize: his outspoken political views; his Turkish, Muslim background; his allegiances with progressive politicians. But they also take issue with the fact that Piker – physically imposing and charismatic – does not fit stereotypical lefty caricatures. He has not been afraid his appearance in revealing magazine spreads or social media posts.

“To be frank, I had no clue that this is what I was going to be doing,” states Piker. “Like, if someone were to ask me, did you ever think that you’d become a Twitch streamer? I’d be like, what is Twitch?”

It’s early and he’s preparing to start his regular late morning show. He typically streams live for seven or eight hours consecutively, talking unscripted about current affairs, lifestyle stories, what he’s up to, playing video games, engaging with memes and media clips, and interacting with the never-ending stream of messages from viewers.

Beginning at The Young Turks to Twitch

Building himself on Twitch, a platform primarily for streaming video games, was a conscious decision, Piker explains. His media career began with The Young Turks, the left-leaning online news network. His parents are Turkish immigrants, and he was raised between New Jersey and Istanbul before studying political science. He graduated to his own show on the network in 2016 but in 2018 he decided to go solo on Twitch, to provide an alternative to what he saw as dominantly rightwing, and often toxic views that permeated the space.

“You can find ideological diversity amongst the gamers, amongst the developers, amongst the consumers, but sadly, the market for political expression in this hobby is so heavily dominated by the right,” he notes.

The Problem with the American Left

This is the core issue with the American left in broad terms, argues Piker: they’ve relinquished so many battlegrounds to the right. “You absolutely have to market your ideas … but they just completely gave up on all notion of marketing or branding.”

Piker is regularly critical of recent administrations on his show, particularly on foreign policy, but he is no loyal supporter of the major center-left party. His own politics are broadly social democratic and “empathy-first”, he explains. “My viewpoint is actually the standard position in much of the world.”

Controversies and Backlash

One of the dangers of Piker’s style of relaxed, accessible commentary is that he’ll occasionally go too far, which gives his critics ammunition. He has been suspended from Twitch several times for deemed offensive content. In a highly publicized incident, in 2019, in the context of a wider critique, he made a statement about a national tragedy that was amplified by right-wing media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the wording was ill-chosen.

Likewise, Piker’s outspoken support for Palestinian rights and condemnation of certain state policies have led to allegations of prejudice, which he denies. He has also been ridiculed for expressing praise for a different major global power, after a trip there.

“I have no issues getting vilified by people on the right. I love when my enemies hate me,” he states. “It is what it is.”

Offline Repercussions

The hate constantly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was detained by American border agents on his re-entry from travel abroad. They questioned him about his political opinions before releasing him. “I think they did it because they know who I am,” he said.

These levels of enmity help explain the “Free Kaya!” incident in Dublin. It started with a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, yelped suddenly. Online conspiracy theorists swiftly concluded that Piker was harming the animal, igniting a online controversy dubbed “the collar incident.” Even a prominent animal rights organization put out a statement. This led to the ambush by a random in Dublin.

Piker took that encounter in his stride. Online, though, the encounter was edited from his live stream and shared with his response edited out. “They wanted to make it look like I was devastated,” he said.

The Difference Between Online and Offline Worlds

This illustrates the chasm between the offline and online worlds, he says: “It’s very difficult to maintain a very negative energy in the real world and not coming across as hysterical and odd. Exchanges on the internet foster this environment where you can be as hostile as you want.”

That Dublin encounter was fairly low stakes. In the US, he admits to feeling less safe. The fatal shooting of a right-wing commentator served as a harrowing example of where this online hate can lead. Piker watched the event unfold in real time on his stream.

Piker still do real-life streams in the US. “I can’t let fear guide my life. I’ve gotten death threats for over a decade,” he says. Unhealthy one-sided fan dynamics come with the territory, he acknowledges.

Looking Ahead and Finding Balance

Having been prescient about the last election, how does Piker feel the next few years? “The landscape shifts quite rapidly, but if you look at the avenues where there is some glimmer of hope, it’s the left candidates that are actually really galvanising the public,” he says. He points to the progressive “wing”.

“We have to embrace that, because I feel like it’s a matter of critical importance at this point,” he adds. “So I will do anything in my power to try and prevent a worse alternative.”

The American left could perhaps do with someone like Piker. But it seems unlikely as if Piker is tempted in mainstream political office. He makes occasional media guest spots, but he’s not tempted further into legacy media, he says. “The audience is moving in my direction, and away from legacy publishers.”

And on top of that, he clearly enjoys it: “I find a lot of personal fulfilment in what I do.” As he’s talking, he’s got one eye on the clock. Another marathon live stream awaits, and he’s itching to get started.