‘I relish when my foes loathe me’: the way Hasan Piker became a leading the biggest personalities on the American left

Hasan Piker refers to it an everyday benchmark: “Picture yourself on a bus and you have a brief moment to clarify any online phenomena took place to the bus driver without them turning to you and saying, ‘Leave the damn bus.’” Most online debate, regardless of how intense, does not pass the test, he says – not least a strange event last weekend, when someone on a Dublin street asked to take a picture with Piker, then produced a picture of his dog and shouted “Free Kaya!” Forget the bus driver; trying to explain the importance of this particular event could easily take the rest of this article.

Navigating the In-Between Space

Piker increasingly exists in this liminal zone increasingly these days. Until fairly recently, the 34-year-old was known primarily to the very online, especially Americans in their 20s and 30s, mostly thanks to his presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But since the last presidential election, Piker has transformed into an in-demand voice in “offline circles” for his perspectives on the struggling political left, and specifically that inordinately fretted-over demographic, young men.

A Favorite Target for the Political Right

Predictably, this also positions Piker a favorite target of the political right. To his enemies there is a lot to dislike: his blunt political stances; his Turkish, Muslim background; his associations with progressive politicians. But they also resent the fact that Piker – physically imposing and charismatic – defies stereotypical lefty stereotypes. He has not been afraid his appearance in shirtless magazine spreads or social media posts.

“I’ll be honest, I had no idea that this is what I was going to be doing,” says 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 early and he’s preparing to start his daily late morning show. He usually broadcasts live for seven or eight hours straight, talking off the cuff about the news, lifestyle stories, his personal life, playing video games, reacting to memes and media clips, and responding to the constant stream of messages from viewers.

Beginning at The Young Turks to Twitch

Building himself on Twitch, which is primarily for livestreaming video games, was a conscious decision, Piker says. His media career started out with The Young Turks, the progressive online news network. Piker’s parents are Turkish immigrants, and he grew up 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 decided to go solo on Twitch, to provide an alternative to what he saw as overwhelmingly conservative, and often divisive views that infested the space.

“There’s a lot of ideological diversity among the gamers, amongst the developers, among the consumers, but unfortunately, the market for political expression in this arena is so overwhelmingly dominated by the right,” he says.

The Challenge with the American Left

This is the core problem with the American left in general, says Piker: they’ve relinquished so many cultural spaces to the right. “You absolutely have to promote your ideas … but they simply completely abandoned all notion of marketing or branding.”

Piker is consistently critical of past 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 democrat and “compassion-driven”, he clarifies. “My viewpoint is actually the normal position in most of the world.”

Firestorms and Backlash

One of the risks of Piker’s type of informal, relatable commentary is that he’ll occasionally go too far, which gives his critics ammunition. He has been temporarily banned from Twitch multiple times for deemed offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the framework of a wider critique, he made a comment about a historic attack that was seized upon by conservative media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the wording was inappropriate.

Similarly, Piker’s outspoken support for Palestinian rights and criticism of certain government actions have led to accusations of prejudice, which he strongly rejects. He has also been mocked for expressing admiration for a different major global power, after a trip there.

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

Offline 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 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 enmity help explain the “Free Kaya!” incident in Dublin. It originated from a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, made a noise suddenly. Online detractors jumped to the conclusion that Piker was harming the animal, igniting a online controversy dubbed “the collar incident.” Even a prominent animal rights organization issued 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 disseminated with his response edited out. “They wanted to make it look like I was shocked,” he said.

The Difference Between Online and Real Worlds

This highlights the chasm between the offline and online worlds, he explains: “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 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 right-wing commentator was a shocking example of where this online hate can end up. Piker watched the event develop in real time on his stream.

Piker continues to do real-life streams in the US. “I can’t let fear dictate my life. I’ve gotten death threats for over a decade,” he says. Unhealthy one-sided fan dynamics are part of the territory, he acknowledges.

Looking Ahead and Staying Grounded

Having been prescient about the last election, how does Piker feel the next few years? “Things change 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 “left flank”.

“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 everything in my power to try and avoid a worse alternative.”

The American left could perhaps do with someone like Piker. But it doesn’t sound as if Piker is tempted in traditional political office. He makes periodic media appearances, 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 emotional fulfilment in what I do.” As he’s talking, he’s got one eye on the clock. Another lengthy live stream is about to begin, and he’s itching to get started.