‘I adore when my adversaries loathe me’: the way Hasan Piker became among the biggest voices on the US political left

Hasan Piker calls it an everyday benchmark: “Imagine boarding a bus and you have a brief moment to clarify any online event took place to the bus driver before them turning to you and going, ‘Leave the damn bus.’” Most online debate, no matter how fiery, fails the test, he argues – not least an incident last weekend, when a person on a Dublin street asked to take a picture with Piker, then produced a picture of his dog and shouted “Free Kaya!” Never mind the bus driver; trying to explain the significance of that specific event could easily take the remainder of this article.

Navigating the Gray Zone

Piker finds himself in this gray area increasingly these days. Until relatively recently, the 34-year-old was known primarily to the digitally immersed, particularly Americans in their 20s and 30s, mostly thanks to his presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But since a recent presidential election, Piker has transformed into an in-demand voice in “offline circles” for his analysis on the struggling political left, and especially that constantly discussed demographic, young men.

A Prime Target for the Right

Unsurprisingly, this also makes Piker a prime hate figure of the political right. To his enemies there is a lot to criticize: his blunt political views; his Turkish, Muslim background; his allegiances with progressive politicians. But they also resent the fact that Piker – tall, muscular, fashionable and handsome – does not fit typical lefty caricatures. He has leveraged his physique in revealing magazine spreads or social media posts.

“I’ll be honest, I had no clue that this is what I was going to be doing,” states Piker. “For instance, if someone were to ask me, did you imagine that you’d become a Twitch streamer? I’d be like, what is Twitch?”

It’s early and he’s preparing to start his daily late morning show. He typically broadcasts live for seven or eight hours straight, talking off the cuff about current affairs, pop culture, his personal life, playing video games, reacting to memes and media clips, and interacting with the never-ending stream of messages from viewers.

Beginning at The Young Turks to Solo Streaming

Building himself on Twitch, which is primarily for livestreaming video games, was a conscious decision, Piker explains. His media career began with The Young Turks, the progressive online news network. His parents are Turkish immigrants, and he was raised between New Jersey and Istanbul before majoring in political science. He eventually hosted his own show on the network in 2016 but in 2018 he chose to go solo on Twitch, to provide an alternative to what he saw as dominantly rightwing, and often divisive views that infested the space.

“There’s a lot of ideological variety amongst the gamers, among 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 fundamental issue with the American left in broad terms, says Piker: they’ve ceded so many cultural spaces to the right. “You absolutely have to promote your ideas … but they just completely gave up on all notion of marketing or branding.”

Piker is consistently sharply critical of recent administrations on his show, particularly on foreign policy, but he is no loyal member of the dominant center-left party. His own politics are broadly social democratic and “compassion-driven”, he clarifies. “My position is actually the standard position in much of the world.”

Controversies and Backlash

One of the dangers of Piker’s style of informal, accessible commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which provides his opponents fodder. He has been suspended from Twitch multiple times for perceived offensive content. In a highly publicized incident, in 2019, in the context of a wider critique, he made a comment about a national tragedy that was seized upon by conservative media outlets. Piker later expressed regret and said the language was inappropriate.

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

“I have no problem getting attacked by people on the right. I relish when my enemies hate me,” he says. “It is what it is.”

Real-World Repercussions

The vitriol increasingly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was detained by American border agents on his return from travel abroad. They interrogated him about his views before letting him go. “I think they did it because they are aware of who I am,” he said.

These levels of hostility help explain the “Free Kaya!” incident in Dublin. It originated from a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, yelped suddenly. Online conspiracy theorists jumped to the conclusion that Piker was harming the animal, igniting a online controversy dubbed “collargate.” Even a major animal rights organization put out a statement. This led to the ambush by a stranger in Dublin.

Piker handled the situation in his stride. Online, though, the encounter was edited from his live stream and disseminated with his response edited out. “They wanted to make it look like I was shocked,” he said.

The Difference Between Digital and Real Worlds

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

That Dublin encounter was relatively low stakes. In the US, he feels less safe. The fatal shooting of a conservative commentator was a shocking example of where this online hate can end up. Piker watched the event unfold in real time on his stream.

Piker continues to do real-life streams in the US. “I can’t let fear guide my life. I’ve gotten death threats for years,” he says. Toxic one-sided fan dynamics come with the territory, he accepts.

The Future and Finding Balance

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

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

The American left could perhaps do with someone like Piker. But it doesn’t sound as if Piker is interested in traditional political office. He makes periodic media guest spots, but he’s not drawn further into traditional media, he says. “Viewers is moving in my direction, and away from legacy publishers.”

And on top of that, he clearly enjoys it: “I find a lot of emotional 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.