‘I love when my foes loathe me’: how Hasan Piker emerged as one of the most prominent figures on the American political left

Hasan Piker refers to it an everyday benchmark: “You get on a bus and you have a brief moment to explain any online event took place to the bus driver without them turning to you and going, ‘Get off the fucking bus.’” The vast majority of online debate, no matter how heated, does not pass the test, he contends – including an incident recently, when someone on a Dublin street requested to take a picture with Piker, then held up a picture of his dog and shouted “Free Kaya!” Forget the bus driver; attempting to explain the meaning of this particular event could easily take the remainder of this article.

Navigating the Gray Space

Piker operates in this gray area more and more these days. Until relatively recently, the 34-year-old was known primarily to the very online, especially Americans in their twenties and thirties, mostly thanks to his presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But since the last presidential election, Piker has become an in-demand voice in “traditional media” for his views on the beleaguered political left, and especially that inordinately discussed demographic, young men.

A Favorite Target for the Right

Unsurprisingly, this also positions Piker a prime villain of the political right. To his detractors there is a lot to dislike: his blunt political views; his cultural background; his allegiances with left-wing politicians. But they also resent the fact that Piker – physically imposing and charismatic – does not fit typical lefty stereotypes. He has not been afraid his appearance in revealing magazine photoshoots 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 imagine that you’d become a Twitch streamer? I’d be like, what is Twitch?”

It’s the morning and he’s preparing to start his regular late morning show. He usually streams live for seven to eight hours consecutively, talking off the cuff about current affairs, pop culture, what he’s up to, playing video games, reacting to memes and media clips, and interacting with the constant stream of messages from viewers.

From The Young Turks to Twitch

Establishing himself on Twitch, a platform primarily for livestreaming video games, was a conscious decision, Piker explains. His media career started out with The Young Turks, the progressive online news network. His parents are Turkish immigrants, and he grew up between New Jersey and Istanbul before majoring in political science. He graduated to 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 overwhelmingly rightwing, and often toxic views that infested the space.

“There’s a lot of ideological variety amongst the gamers, amongst the developers, among the consumers, but unfortunately, the market for political commentary in this arena 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, argues Piker: they’ve conceded so many cultural spaces to the right. “You still have to promote your ideas … but they simply completely gave up on all notion of marketing or branding.”

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

Controversies and Criticism

One of the risks of Piker’s type of informal, relatable commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which gives his critics ammunition. He has been temporarily banned from Twitch multiple times for deemed offensive content. In a highly publicized incident, in 2019, in the framework of a broader critique, he made a comment about a historic attack that was amplified by conservative media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the language was ill-chosen.

Likewise, Piker’s vocal support for Palestinians and condemnation of certain state policies have led to allegations of bias, which he denies. He has also been mocked for expressing praise for another major global power, after a trip there.

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

Real-World Repercussions

The vitriol increasingly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was questioned by US border agents on his re-entry from a trip. They questioned him about his political opinions 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, made a noise suddenly. Online conspiracy theorists jumped to the conclusion that Piker was mistreating 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 random in Dublin.

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

The Divide Between Digital and Real Worlds

This illustrates the chasm between the offline and online worlds, he explains: “It’s very hard to maintain a very negative energy in the real world without coming across as hysterical and odd. Interactions on the internet foster this environment where you can be as aggressive 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 was 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 dictate my life. I’ve gotten death threats for years,” he says. Unhealthy one-sided fan dynamics are part of the territory, he accepts.

Looking Ahead and Staying Grounded

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

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

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

And on top of that, he still 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 eager to get started.