From Digital Commentator to Ideological Figurehead: The Ascent of Hasan Piker

Hasan Piker refers to it a simple litmus test: “Picture yourself on a bus and you have 30 seconds to explain whatever online event occurred to the bus driver without them turning to you and saying, ‘Get off the damn bus.’” Most online debate, no matter how heated, 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 yelled “Free Kaya!” Forget the bus driver; trying to explain the significance of that specific event could easily take the rest of this article.

Existing in the Gray Space

Piker increasingly exists in this gray area increasingly these days. Until fairly recently, the 34-year-old was known only to the digitally immersed, particularly Americans in their 20s and 30s, mostly thanks to his dominant presence on the streaming platform Twitch. But since a recent presidential election, Piker has become an sought-after voice in “the real world” for his views on the struggling political left, and specifically that constantly fretted-over demographic, young men.

A Prime Target for the Political Right

Predictably, this also makes Piker a favorite target of the political right. To his detractors there is a lot to criticize: his blunt political views; his cultural background; his associations with left-wing politicians. But they also take issue with the fact that Piker – tall, muscular, fashionable and handsome – does not fit stereotypical lefty caricatures. He has leveraged his appearance in shirtless magazine photoshoots 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 11am show. He typically broadcasts live for seven or eight hours straight, talking unscripted about current affairs, pop culture, what he’s up to, 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

Establishing himself on Twitch, which is primarily for streaming video games, was a deliberate decision, Piker explains. His media career started out with The Young Turks, the progressive online news network. Piker’s 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 chose to go solo on Twitch, to counterbalance what he saw as overwhelmingly rightwing, and often toxic views that infested the space.

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

The Challenge with the American Left

This is the fundamental issue with the American left in broad terms, says Piker: they’ve ceded so many arenas to the right. “You absolutely have to promote your ideas … but they just completely abandoned 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 democratic and “compassion-driven”, he explains. “My position is actually the standard position in most of the world.”

Firestorms and Criticism

One of the dangers of Piker’s style of relaxed, relatable commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which provides his critics ammunition. He has been temporarily banned from Twitch several times for deemed offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the context of a wider critique, he made a statement about a historic attack that was amplified by conservative media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the language was inappropriate.

Similarly, Piker’s outspoken support for Palestinians and condemnation of certain government actions have led to accusations of prejudice, which he denies. 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 love when my enemies hate me,” he says. “It is what it is.”

Offline Consequences

The hate constantly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was detained 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 hostility help explain the “Free Kaya!” incident in Dublin. It originated from a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, yelped suddenly. Online detractors swiftly concluded that Piker was harming the animal, sparking 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 Online and Offline 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 without coming across as hysterical and odd. Interactions 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 assassination of a conservative commentator served as a harrowing 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 over a decade,” he says. Toxic parasocial relationships are part of the territory, he accepts.

The Future and Finding Balance

Having been accurate about a recent election, how does Piker view the next few years? “Things change 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 life or death at this point,” he adds. “So I will do everything in my power to try and avoid a worse alternative.”

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