‘I love when my adversaries loathe me’: the way Hasan Piker emerged as among the biggest personalities on the American left

Hasan Piker calls it a simple litmus test: “You get on a bus and you have a brief moment to describe any online event took place to the bus driver without them looking at you and saying, ‘Get off the fucking bus.’” Most online conversation, regardless of how intense, fails the test, he says – not least a strange event recently, 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 that specific event might well take the rest of this article.

Occupying the Blurred Space

Piker increasingly exists in this liminal zone increasingly these days. Until relatively recently, the thirty-four-year-old was known only to the digitally immersed, especially Americans in their twenties and thirties, largely thanks to his dominant presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But following the last presidential election, Piker has become an in-demand voice in “offline circles” for his analysis on the beleaguered political left, and specifically that constantly discussed demographic, young men.

A Favorite Target for the Right

Predictably, this also positions Piker a prime hate figure of the political right. To his c critics there is a lot to dislike: his direct political stances; his cultural background; his allegiances with progressive politicians. But they also resent the fact that Piker – physically imposing and charismatic – defies stereotypical lefty caricatures. He has leveraged his physique 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,” 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 getting ready to start his daily late morning show. He typically streams live for seven or eight hours consecutively, talking off the cuff about the news, lifestyle stories, his personal life, playing video games, engaging with memes and media clips, and responding to the constant stream of comments from viewers.

From The Young Turks to Solo Streaming

Establishing himself on Twitch, a platform primarily for streaming video games, was a deliberate decision, Piker says. His media career began with The Young Turks, the left-leaning online news network. Piker’s parents are Turkish immigrants, and he grew up 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 conservative, and often divisive views that infested the space.

“There’s a lot of ideological diversity among the gamers, among the developers, among the consumers, but sadly, the market for political commentary in this hobby is so heavily dominated by the right,” he notes.

The Challenge with the American Left

This is the fundamental problem with the American left in general, argues Piker: they’ve ceded so many arenas to the right. “You still 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, especially on foreign policy, but he is no loyal supporter of the dominant center-left party. His own politics are broadly social democratic and “compassion-driven”, he explains. “My viewpoint is actually the standard position in much of the world.”

Firestorms and Criticism

One of the dangers of Piker’s type of relaxed, relatable commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which gives his critics 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 broader critique, he made a statement about a national tragedy that was amplified by conservative media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the wording was ill-chosen.

Similarly, Piker’s outspoken support for Palestinian rights and criticism of certain government actions have led to allegations of bias, 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 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 constantly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was detained by US border agents on his return from a trip. They interrogated 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, made a noise suddenly. Online conspiracy theorists jumped to the conclusion that Piker was mistreating the animal, igniting a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “collargate.” Even a major animal rights organization issued a statement. This led to the surprise encounter by a stranger 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 shocked,” he said.

The Difference 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. Exchanges on the internet create 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 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 parasocial relationships are part of the territory, he acknowledges.

The Future and Finding Balance

Having been prescient about a recent election, how does Piker view the next few years? “Things change 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 points to the progressive “wing”.

“We have to lean into 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 avoid a dark alternative.”

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

But on top of that, he clearly finds it fulfilling: “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 eager to get started.