🔗 Share this article ‘I relish when my adversaries hate me’: how Hasan Piker became a leading the most prominent voices on the American left Hasan Piker refers to it a simple litmus test: “Picture yourself on a bus and you have a brief moment to explain whatever online drama took place to the bus driver without them turning to you and going, ‘Leave the fucking bus.’” The vast majority of online conversation, no matter how fiery, does not pass the test, he argues – not least a strange event last weekend, when someone on a Dublin street requested 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 significance of that specific event could easily take the rest of this article. Navigating the Gray Space Piker operates in this gray area increasingly these days. Until fairly recently, the 34-year-old was known primarily to the very online, particularly Americans in their twenties and thirties, largely thanks to his presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But since a recent presidential election, Piker has transformed into an sought-after voice in “offline circles” for his analysis on the beleaguered political left, and specifically that constantly fretted-over demographic, young men. A Favorite Target for the Right Unsurprisingly, this also makes Piker a favorite villain of the political right. To his enemies there is a lot to criticize: his direct 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 – defies stereotypical lefty stereotypes. He has leveraged his appearance in revealing magazine photoshoots or social media posts. “I’ll be honest, I had no idea that this is what I was going to be doing,” states Piker. “Like, if someone were to ask me, did you ever think that you’d become a Twitch streamer? I’d be like, what is Twitch?” It’s the morning and he’s getting ready to start his daily 11am show. He typically broadcasts live for seven to eight hours consecutively, talking off the cuff about current affairs, pop culture, his personal life, playing video games, reacting to memes and media clips, and responding to the constant stream of messages from viewers. From The Young Turks to Solo Streaming Establishing himself on Twitch, which is primarily for livestreaming video games, was a conscious 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 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 decided to go solo on Twitch, to counterbalance what he saw as dominantly rightwing, and often divisive views that permeated the space. “You can find ideological diversity among the gamers, amongst the developers, amongst the consumers, but unfortunately, the market for political expression in this arena is so overwhelmingly dominated by the right,” he notes. The Challenge with the American Left This is the fundamental problem with the American left in broad terms, says Piker: they’ve relinquished 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 regularly sharply critical of recent administrations on his show, especially on foreign policy, but he is not a loyal member of the major center-left party. His own politics are generally social democrat 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 relaxed, relatable commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which provides his opponents ammunition. He has been suspended from Twitch multiple times for deemed offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the context of a wider critique, he made a statement about a national tragedy that was amplified by right-wing media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the language was inappropriate. Likewise, Piker’s vocal support for Palestinians and criticism of certain state policies have led to allegations of bias, which he denies. He has also been ridiculed for expressing praise for another 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.” Offline Repercussions The vitriol constantly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was questioned by American border agents on his return from travel abroad. They interrogated him about his political opinions before letting him go. “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 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 random in Dublin. Piker took that encounter 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 difference 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 unhinged and odd. Interactions on the internet foster this environment where you can be as aggressive as you want.” That Dublin encounter was relatively low stakes. In the US, he admits to feeling less safe. The assassination of a conservative commentator was a harrowing 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. Toxic one-sided fan dynamics come with the territory, he acknowledges. The Future and Finding Balance Having been accurate 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 really galvanising the public,” he says. He points to the progressive “wing”. “We have to embrace 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 prevent a worse alternative.” The American left could arguably do with someone like Piker. But it seems unlikely as if Piker is interested in mainstream political office. He makes periodic media guest spots, but he’s not drawn further into traditional media, he says. “The audience is moving in my direction, and away from traditional 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 marathon live stream is about to begin, and he’s eager to get started.
Hasan Piker refers to it a simple litmus test: “Picture yourself on a bus and you have a brief moment to explain whatever online drama took place to the bus driver without them turning to you and going, ‘Leave the fucking bus.’” The vast majority of online conversation, no matter how fiery, does not pass the test, he argues – not least a strange event last weekend, when someone on a Dublin street requested 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 significance of that specific event could easily take the rest of this article. Navigating the Gray Space Piker operates in this gray area increasingly these days. Until fairly recently, the 34-year-old was known primarily to the very online, particularly Americans in their twenties and thirties, largely thanks to his presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But since a recent presidential election, Piker has transformed into an sought-after voice in “offline circles” for his analysis on the beleaguered political left, and specifically that constantly fretted-over demographic, young men. A Favorite Target for the Right Unsurprisingly, this also makes Piker a favorite villain of the political right. To his enemies there is a lot to criticize: his direct 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 – defies stereotypical lefty stereotypes. He has leveraged his appearance in revealing magazine photoshoots or social media posts. “I’ll be honest, I had no idea that this is what I was going to be doing,” states Piker. “Like, if someone were to ask me, did you ever think that you’d become a Twitch streamer? I’d be like, what is Twitch?” It’s the morning and he’s getting ready to start his daily 11am show. He typically broadcasts live for seven to eight hours consecutively, talking off the cuff about current affairs, pop culture, his personal life, playing video games, reacting to memes and media clips, and responding to the constant stream of messages from viewers. From The Young Turks to Solo Streaming Establishing himself on Twitch, which is primarily for livestreaming video games, was a conscious 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 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 decided to go solo on Twitch, to counterbalance what he saw as dominantly rightwing, and often divisive views that permeated the space. “You can find ideological diversity among the gamers, amongst the developers, amongst the consumers, but unfortunately, the market for political expression in this arena is so overwhelmingly dominated by the right,” he notes. The Challenge with the American Left This is the fundamental problem with the American left in broad terms, says Piker: they’ve relinquished 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 regularly sharply critical of recent administrations on his show, especially on foreign policy, but he is not a loyal member of the major center-left party. His own politics are generally social democrat 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 relaxed, relatable commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which provides his opponents ammunition. He has been suspended from Twitch multiple times for deemed offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the context of a wider critique, he made a statement about a national tragedy that was amplified by right-wing media outlets. Piker later apologised and said the language was inappropriate. Likewise, Piker’s vocal support for Palestinians and criticism of certain state policies have led to allegations of bias, which he denies. He has also been ridiculed for expressing praise for another 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.” Offline Repercussions The vitriol constantly risks to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was questioned by American border agents on his return from travel abroad. They interrogated him about his political opinions before letting him go. “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 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 random in Dublin. Piker took that encounter 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 difference 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 unhinged and odd. Interactions on the internet foster this environment where you can be as aggressive as you want.” That Dublin encounter was relatively low stakes. In the US, he admits to feeling less safe. The assassination of a conservative commentator was a harrowing 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. Toxic one-sided fan dynamics come with the territory, he acknowledges. The Future and Finding Balance Having been accurate 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 really galvanising the public,” he says. He points to the progressive “wing”. “We have to embrace 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 prevent a worse alternative.” The American left could arguably do with someone like Piker. But it seems unlikely as if Piker is interested in mainstream political office. He makes periodic media guest spots, but he’s not drawn further into traditional media, he says. “The audience is moving in my direction, and away from traditional 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 marathon live stream is about to begin, and he’s eager to get started.